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rARBOH  i 

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LIBRARY  of  the 
UNIVERSITY  OF  TORONTO 

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"HUR  H.  ChARK  COMPANY 
.l.<'rsan(i  nookiellera,  1 


DM' 

CHRISTOPHER  GIST'S 
JOURNALS    '■'''^^ 


■.'  '*  WITH 


f- 


HISTORICAL,  GEOGRAPHICAL  AND 
ETHNOLOGICAL  NOTES 


AND 


Biographies  of  his  Contemporaries 

BY 

WILLIAM  M.  DARLINGTON 


9i 


'^      ''^^V.?J     #^  PITTSBURGH 

f);^?"""'"  J.    R.    WELDIN    &    CO. 

•89? 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

Introductory  Memoir 9 

Gist's  Three  Journals 3' 

Christopher  Gist 88 

Notes  to  Christopher  Gist's  First  Journal  of  1750-51 90 

Notes  to  Gist's  Second  Journal,  1751-52 i37 

Notes  to  Christopher  Gist's  Third  Journal,  1753 i47 

A  Journal  Descriptive  of  Some  of  the  French  Forts 148 

The  Montours 'S^ 

Andrew  Montour '59 

George  Croghan *76 

Thomas  Cresap 202 

General  James  Grant 207 

Guyasuta 2'° 

Treaty  of  Lancaster 217 

Ohio  Company 220 

Walpole  Grant 241 

Wm.  Trent  &  Co 245 

Captain  Trent 249 

John  Peter  Salley     253 

Scheme  for  a  New  Settlement 261 

Robert  Orme 267 

Extracts  from  Analysis  of  Map ;  .   .   .   .  271 

Pownall's  Account  of  Lead  Plate 273 

Ensign  Ward's  Deposition 275 

Letters  and  Speeches  to  Indians 279 


INTRODUCTORY  MEMOIR. 


The  riches  realized  by  Spain  and  Portugal  in  the  sixteenth 
century  from  their  newly  acquired  possessions  in  America 
excited  amongst  enterprising  Englishmen  a  determination  to 
establish  colonies  in  that  part  of  the  Northern  Continent 
extending  from  Canada  to  Florida,  claimed  for  England  in 
right  of  its  discovery  by  the  Cabots ;  also,  to  seek  new  dis- 
coveries, and  especially  a  short  passage  through  the  interior 
of  the  country  to  the  South  Sea. 

In  April,  1585,  colonists  were  sent  out  by  Sir  Walter  Raleigh, 
and  in  the  following  month  of  August  they  landed  on  the  island 
of  Roanoke,  on  the  eastern  border  of  the  present  State  of  North 
Carolina,  and  there  commenced  the  first  English  settlement  in 
America.  After  exploring  the  neighboring  rivers  and  sounds, 
they  were  induced  by  the  relation  of  the  Indians  respecting 
the  river  Meratue  (Roanoke)  to  attempt  its  exploration  and 
endeavor  to  reach  the  head  thereof,  which  the  natives  told 
them  sprang  from  a  huge  rock  near  the  sea,  thirty  or  forty 
days'  voyage  westward,  and  "  in  that  abundance  that  it  forth- 
with maketh  a  most  violent  stream." 

In  March,  1586,  Governor  Ralph  Lane,  with  two  boats  and 
forty  men,  ascended  the  river  about  one  hundred  miles  (near 
to  the  present  town  of  Halifax),  hoping,  as  he  afterwards 
wrote,  for  the  discovery  of  a  gold  mine  or  a  passage  to  the 
South  Sea ;  but  they  were  assailed  by  hostile  Indians  and  so 
nearly  starved  that  "  they  ate  their  two  mastiff  dogs  boiled 

a  (9) 


10  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

with  Sassafras  leaves,  and  were  compelled  to  return." '  Their 
voyage  is  memorable  for  being  the  earliest  attempt  by 
the  English  to  explore  the  interior  of  America  from  the 
Atlantic  westward.  The  relation  of  the  Indians  to  the  col- 
onists has  been  stigmatized  by  historians  as  "extravagant 
tales,  which  nothing  but  cupidity  could  have  credited."'' 
Now  as  the  Roanoke,  by  its  meanderings,  is  four  hundred 
miles  in  length,  thirty  to  forty  days  would  be  required  to 
ascend  to  its  source.  Its  various  head  springs,  on  the  main 
ridge  of  the  Alleghenies,  in  Montgomery  County,  Virginia, 
are  scarce  a  mile  from  the  waters  of  the  Kanawha,  or  New 
River,  and  but  eight  miles  from  its  main  channel.  The  rela- 
tion of  the  Indians  was,  in  this  respect  at  least,  true,  for  the 
Roanoke  does  "forthwith  make  a  most  violent  stream;" 
issuing  by  numerous  creeks  from  this  elevated  tract  and  unit- 
ing into  one  body,  it  soon  becomes  the  "rapid  Roanoke,"  and 
on  reaching  Salem,  in  Roanoke  County,  "  has  fallen  one  thou- 
sand feet  in  little  more  than  twenty  miles." ' 

The  natives,  probably,  meant,  if  their  "  tales  "  were  rightly 
interpreted,  that  the  head  of  the  Roanoke  was  near  another 
stream  whose  waters  flowed  to  another  and  distant  sea.  The 
city,  rich  with  gold  and  pearls,  they  called  Chaunis  Temocatan, 
was  Mexico  or  Tetuan,  its  ancient  name. 

Discouraged  by  the  prospect,  the  colonists  abandoned  their 
settlement  and  returned  to  England,  with  the  fleet  of  Sir 
Francis  Drake,  in  the  following  month  of  June.  Subsequent 
attempts  by  Raleigh  and  some  of  his  associates  to  re-estab- 
lish the  colony  at  Roanoke  failed  disastrously,  almost  ruining 
the  fortune  of  the  illustrious  author  of  the  project. 

1  Hakluyt's  "  Voyages,"  Vol.  III.    Lane  and  Harriot's  Relation. 
»  Bancroft's  "  History  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  I,  p.  99.     Burke's 
"History  of  Virginia,"  Vol.  I,  p.  56. 
«  Martin's  "Geographical  Gazetteer  of  Virginia,"  p.  53. 


INTRODUCTORY   MEMOIR.  II 

\ 

Twenty  years  later,  on  May  14,  1606,  the  first  permanent 
settlement  by  the  English  in  America  commenced  at  James- 
town, on  the  Powhatan  or  James  River,  and  a  week  thereafter 
Captain  Christopher  Newport,  with  Captain  John  Smith  and 
a  company  of  twenty-three  persons,  sailed  in  a  shallop  from 
"James  Fort  "  up  the  river,  "with  a  perfect  resolution  not  to 
return,  but  either  to  finde  the  heade  of  this  ryver,  the  lake 
mentioned  by  others  heretofore,  the  Sea  againe,  the  moun- 
taynes  Apalatsi  or  some  issue."' 

They  reached  the  Falls,  at  the  site  of  the  present  city  of 
Richmond,  and  on  an  islet  in  the  river  erected  a  wooden  cross 
and  proclaimed  King  James  "with  a  greate  showte.'"  The 
Governing  Council  in  England  had  instructed  them  that  the 
"Discovery  of  the  South  Sea  (Pacific)  as  the  certain  and 
infallible  way  to  immense  riches  was  an  object  of  which  they 
were  ever  solicitous  and  intent." ' 

The  successful  establishment  of  the  colony  was  of  much 
less  importance  than  searching  for  mines  of  gold  or  explora- 
tions westward  by  means  of  navigable  rivers.  In  the  summer 
of  the  following  year  Captain  John  Smith  explored  the  Chesa- 
peake Bay  to  the  Susquehanna,  entering  into  all  the  rivers 
and  inlets  as  far  as  he  could  sail,  of  all  of  which  he  constructed 
an  admirable  map.  In  the  fall  of  the  same  year  Captain 
Newport  returned  from  a  visit  to  England  with  a  private  com- 
mission "  Not  to  return  without  a  lump  of  gold,  a  certainty 
of  the  South  Sea,  or  one  of  the  lost  colony  of  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh."  He  also  had  a  large  barge  built,  in  five  pieces,  for 
convenience  of  carriage  beyond  the  Falls,  to  convey  them  to« 
the  South  Sea.     With  a  number  of  boats  and  one  hundred 

1  Captain  Newport's  "  Discoveries,"  1607.  British  State  Paper  Office. 
"Transactions  of  the  American  Antiquarian  Society,"  Vol.  IV,  p.  40. 

2  Id.,  p.  47.    Smith's  "Virginia,"  Vol.  I,  p.  151. 
'  Smith's  "Virginia,"  p.  43. 


12  CHRISTOPHER   GISTS   JOURNALS. 

and  twenty  men  he  ascended  the  river  to  the  Falls,  and  thence 
explored  by  land  about  forty  miles  farther  on  the  south  side 
of  the  stream  to  two  towns  of  the  Monacan  Indians,  return- 
ing, wearied  and  disappointed,  by  the  same  path  after  an  inef- 
fectual search  for  rich  mines.  The  "  quartered  boat "  was 
too  cumbrous  to  be  carried  around  the  Falls,  as  Smith  states, 
by  even  five  hundred  men,  sarcastically  adding  "  that  if  burned 
to  ashes  one  might  have  carried  her  in  a  bag." '  The  desire 
for  further  exploration  seems  to  have  subsided  for  many 
years ;  wars  with  the  natives,  their  own  dissensions,  a  con- 
stant struggle  for  the  means  of  subsistence,  and  the  cultiva- 
tion of  tobacco  occupied  the  attention  of  the  colonists.  In 
1624  the  petition  of  the  Virginia  Company  to  the  House  of 
Commons  enumerates  among  other  advantages  accruing  to 
England  in  their  view  and  expectation,  by  the  success  of  the 
colony,  is  the  "  no  small  hopes  of  an  early  and  short  passage 
to  the  South  Sea,  either  by  Sea  or  Land." 

The  prevailing  illusion  respecting  the  short  distance  across 
the  continent  was  not  entirely  dispelled  until  near  the  close 
of  the  century  and  after  the  discovery  and  exploration  of  the 
Mississippi  by  the  French  became  generally  known. 

Sir  William  Berkeley,  Governor  of  Virginia,  was  informed 
by  the  Indians,  in  1648,  "  that  within  five  dayes  journey  to  the 
Westward  and  by  South  there  is  a  great  high  mountaine,  and 
at  foot  thereof  great  Rivers  that  run  into  a  great  Sea ;  and 
that  there  are  men  that  come  hither  in  ships,  (but  not  the 
same  that  ours  be)  they  wear  apparell  and  have  reed  caps  on 
their  heads,  and  ride  on  Beasts  like  our  horses,  but  have  much 
longer  ears,  and  other  circumstances  they  declare  for  the  cer- 
tainty of  these  things."  ^    These  rivers,  doubtless,  were  those 

>  Smith's  "  History,"  Vol.  I,  p.  201. 

.2  «j^  Perfect  Description  of  Virginia,"  1649,  Vol.  Ill,  of  Tracts,  p.  13. 
Also  in  Massachusetts  Historical  Society  Collection,  Vol.  IX,  Second 
Series,  p.  105. 


INTRODUCTORY   MEMOIR.  1 3 

now  known  as  the  Kanawha,  Kentucky,  Cumberland  and 
Tennessee,  whose  waters  flow  from  the  western  slope  of 
the  Allegheny  Mountains  to  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  and 
into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  long  before  frequented  by  Spaniards. 
Governor  Berkeley  made  preparations  for  discovery  in  person, 
with  a  company  of  fifty  horse  and  fifty  footmen,  but  abandoned 
the  enterprise,  probably  in  consequence  of  the  disastrous 
results  to  the  king  in  his  contest  with  the  Parliament  engag- 
ing his  attention — Berkeley  being  a  firm  Royalist. 

The  author  of  a  tract — entitled  "  A  Perfect  Description  of 
Virginia,  etc.,"'  published  in  London  in  1649, wrote,  that  "for 
their  better  knowledge  of  the  Land  they  dwell  in,  the  Planters 
resolve  to  make  a  further  Discovery  into  the  Country,  West 
and  by  South  up  above  the  Fall,  and  we  are  confident  upon 
what  they  have  learned  from  the  Indians  to  find  a  way  to  a 
West  or  South  Sea  by  Land  or  rivers,  and  to  discover  a  way 
to  China  and  East  Indies,  or  unto  some  other  Sea  that 
shall  carry  them  thither ;  "  and  that  "  Sir  Francis  Drake  was 
on  the  back  of  Virginia  in  his  Voyage  about  the  World  in  37 
degrees  just  opposite  to  Virginia,  and  called  Nova  Albion.  And 
now  all  the  question  is  only  how  broad  the  Land  may  be  to  that 
place  from  the  head  of  James  River  above  the  Falls,  but  all 
men  conclude  if  it  be  not  narrow,  yet  that  there  is  and  will  be 
found  the  like  rivers  issuing  into  a  South  Sea  or  West  Sea  on 
the  other  side  of  those  Hills,  as  there  is  on  this  side,  when 
they  run  from  the  West  into  an  East  Sea,  after  a  course  of 
150  miles," 

Prior  to  Governor  Berkeley's  administration,  Walter  Austin 
and  others  obtained  from  the  Assembly,  in  1642,  the  passage  of 
an  Act,  authorizing  them  "  to  undertake  the  discovery  of  a  new 
river  or  unknown  land,  bearing  west,  southerly  from  Appo- 

1"  Force's  Tracts,"  Vol.  II.  Massachusetts  Historical  Collection, 
Vol.   IX,  Second  Series,  p.  105. 


14  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

matake  River."'  It  does  not  appear,  however,  that  any  attempt 
at  exploration  was  made  until  the  year  1650,  when  Edward 
Bland  having  petitioned  the  Assembly  and  obtained  like 
authority  in  August  and  September  of  that  year,  in  company 
with  Edward  Pennant,  Abrahame  Wood  and  Sackford  Brew- 
ster, two  Indian  chiefs  as  guides,  and  two  servants,  explored 
southwest  from  Appomattox  (now  Petersburgh)  to  the  Falls  of 
Roanoke,  or  as  they  named  the  rapids,  Blandina,  above  and 
near  the  present  city  of  Halifax,  North  Carolina,  and  not  far 
above  the  point  on  that  river  reached  by  Raleigh's  colonists, 
sixty-five  years  before.  This  discovery  was  deemed  of  such 
importance  as  to  occasion,  in  the  year  following,  the  publica- 
tion in  London  of  a  narrative  of  the  journey.  In  1652  Col- 
onel William  Clayborne,  Captain  Henry  Fleet,  and  their  associ- 
ates, were  authorized  by  the  Assembly  to  make  discoveries, 
"and  take  up  lands  by  pattents  and  enjoy  benefits  and  trades  as 
they  shall  find  out  in  places  where  no  English  have  ever  been 
and  discovered."  The  same  day  "the  like  order  is  granted 
to  Major  Abra  Wood  and  his  associates." 

In  the  following  year,  the  Assembly  authorized  any  per- 
sons "to  discover  the  Mountains,  Provided  they  go  with  a 
considerable  partie  and  strength,  both  of  men  and  ammuni- 
tion."^ No  farther  attempt  at  exploration  seems  to  have  been 
made  until  the  year  1669,  when  John  Lederer,  a  German  Sur- 
geon, commissioned  by  Governor  Berkeley  to  make  discoveries, 
on  March  9th,  with  three  Indians,  left  the  Falls  of  Pemen- 
cock  (Pamunky)  on  York  River,  from  an  Indian  village  called 
Schickehanini — probably  the  old  Indian  town  near  the  now 
noted  "White  House."*  The  next  day  he  passed  through  the 
marshy   grounds  between  the  Pamunky  and  head-waters  of 

'"Laws of  Virginia,"  p.  267. 

^  "  Oldmixon's  British  Empire  in  America,"  Vol.  I,  p.  382. 

5  Jefferson,  1751. 


INTRODUCTORY  MEMOIR.  15 

the  Matenenenhah  (Mattepony),  in  the  present  King  William 
County,  and  crossed  the  Pamunky  at  its  head/  formed  by  the 
confluence  of  the  North  and  South  Anna  Rivers,  in  Hanover 
County.''  Continuing  along  the  South  Anna  River,  on  the 
13th  he  reached  the  first  spring  of  the  Pamunky,'  a  head  of 
the  South  Anna,  near  the  present  Gordonsville.  On  the  14th 
he  discovered  from  a  high  hill,*  the  "Apelatean"  Mountains' 
to  the  west.  Next  day,  the  iSth,  they  passed  over  the  South 
Branch  of  the  Rappahannock,  or  Rapid  Anne  River,"  and  on 
the  17th  reached  the  Blue  Ridge,  in  the  present  county  of 
Madison.  He  ascended  to  the  top  of  the  mountain  and  found 
it  very  cold,  with  much  snow ;  noticed  the  high  mountain  ranges 
westward  and  the  Atlantic  Ocean  southeastward ;  descended 
and  returned  by  the  course  he  went  out. 

On  the  20th  of  May,  1670,  Lederer  began  his  second  expe- 
dition, in  company  with  one  Major  Harris,'  twenty  Christian 
horsemen  and  five  Indians.  They  marched  from  the  Falls  of 
James  River  to  the  Monakin^  village,  probably  the  same  as 
marked  on  Fry  and  Jefferson's  Map  of  1751,  on  James  River, 
in  the  present  county  of  Cumberland,  and  continued  westward 
one  hundred  miles  farther  to  what  he  calls  "the  south  branch 
of  James  River,"  and  which  "  Major  Harris  vainly  supposed 
to  be  an  arm  of  the  Lake  of  Canada,"  as  he  observed  it  ran 

» In  1656. 

^  The  peninsula  between  these  two  rivers  he  mentions  bears  the  name 
of  Tottopottemen,  a  great  Indian  king,  slain  in  battle  for  the  whites 
against  their  Indian  enemies. 

'  A  small  creek  that  still  bears  this  name. 
,   *  Southwest  mountain  in  Orange  County. 

5  Blue  Ridge. 

^  In  Orange  County. 

'  Major  William  Harris  of  the  Regiment  of  Charles  City  and  Henrico 
Counties. 

*  Tuscarora. 


l6  CHRISTOPHER   GISX's  JOURNALS. 

northward,  "  and  was  inclined  to  erect  a  pillar  in  memory  of 
the  Discovery."  It  seems  evident  from  the  description,  dis- 
tance given  and  his  map,  that  they  had  reached  the  James 
River,  at  its  bend  to  the  north,  a  few  miles  east  from  the 
the  present  city  of  Lynchburg,  in  Campbell  County.  Here  he 
parted  from  his  company,  excepting  one  Susquehanna  Indian, 
and  then  went  south  to  the  Roanoke,  to  the  Island  and  town 
of  Akenatzi^  where  he  was  well  received.  Here  he  met  four 
strange  Indians,  survivors  of  fifty  who  had  come,  Lederer 
says,  "from  some  land  by  the  Sea  to  the  northwest,"  (probably 
the  great  Lakes.)  He  calls  them  Rickahickans  and  states  that 
"  they  were  treacherously  killed  in  the  night  by  the  Indians  of 
Akenatzi."  He  conjectured  that  these  strange  Indians  came 
from  an  arm  or  bay  of  the  Sea  of  California,  which  he  sup- 
posed stretched  up  into  the  continent.  From  Akenatzi  he 
journeyed  southward  into  Carolina  and  thence  returned  to 
Akamatuch. 

These  strange  Indians,  or  Rickahickans,  doubtless  were 
fugitives  of  the  tribe  known  as  Eries,  or  the  Nation  of  the 
Cat,  whose  country  was  on  the  south  shore  of  Lake  Erie. 
They  were  conquered  and  destroyed  as  a  nation  by  the  Iro- 
quois in  1654-5. 

The  Fathers  call  the  tribe  Riguehronnous,  or  those  of  the 
Cat  Nation.''  The  considerable  number  of  the  defeated  Eries 
or  Rickahickans  appear  to  have  reached  Virginia  in  1655, 
about  which  time  the  Iroquois  completed  their  conquest.'    A 

1  On  "  Fry  and  Jefferson's  "  Map  the  Occoneachy  is  laid  down  at  the 
junction  of  the  Staunton  (Roanoke)  and  Dan  Rivers,  in  the  present  Meck- 
lenburg County.  See  also  "  Byrd's  Journey  to  the  Land  of  Eden."  Rich- 
mond, 1866,  p.  5. 

2  "Jesuit  Relations,"  1660,  p.  7,  Vol.  III.    Id.,  1661,  p.  29. 

»  See  Charlevoix's  "  History  of  New  France,"  Vol.  II,  p.  266  and  note. 
Parkman's  "Jesuits  in  America,"  pp.  438-441. 


INTRODUCTORY   MEMOIR.  I? 

special  law  was  passed  to  remove  by  force  "the  new-come 
western  and  inland  Indians  drawn  from  the  Mountaines  and 
lately  sett  downe  near  the  falls  of  James  River  to  the  number 
of  six  or  seven  hundred.'" 

Captain  Edward  Hill,  at  the  head  of  lOO  men,  assisted  by 
Tottopottemen,  King  of  the  Pomukies,  with  lOO  warriors, 
attacked  the  Rickahickans.  The  allies  were  defeated,  Totto- 
pottemen slain.  Captain  Hill  was  cashiered  for  his  conduct 
and  his  estate  charged  with  the  cost  of  procuring  a  peace 
with  the  Rickahickans.  It  is  probable  that  with  the  fugitive 
Eries  were  some  of  the  Neutres  and  Hurons,  kindred  tribes, 
and  also  routed  by  the  Iroquois.' 

On  August  30th  of  the  same  year,  Lederer  again  set  out, 
in  company  with  Captain  Collet,  nine  Englishmen  and  five 
Indians.  They  first  went  to  the  Falls  of  Rappahannock,  near 
the  present  Fredericksburg ;  next  day  they  passed  the  junction 
of  the  Rapid  Anna,  in  Culpepper  County,  and  keeping 
along  the  north  side  of  the  Rappahannock,  on  the  26th  reached 
the  Blue  Ridge,  in  the  present  county  of  Rappahannock; 
there  they  ascended  the  summit  of  the  mountain,  observed 
and  noted  the  great  mountain  range  east  and  west.  The  cold 
prevented  them  from  proceeding  any  farther,  and  they  re- 
turned, having  penetrated  much  farther  northwestward  than 
any  one  previously.  Inconsiderable  as  the  distance  may  now 
seem,  Lederer  was  convinced  those  persons  were  in  error 
who  supposed  it  but  eight  or  ten  days'  journey  from  the  At- 
lantic to  the  Indian  Ocean,  and  that  an  arm  or  bay  of  the  Sea 
of  California  extended  up  into  the  country.  Nor  were  there 
to  be  found  on  the  west  of  the  mountains  large  rivers,  like 

'  Hening,  p.  402. 

'  Hening,  p.  423,  Burke's  "History  of  Virginia,"  Vol.  II,  pp.  104-107. 
See  also  Galletin,  in  "  Transactions  of  the  American  Antiquarian  Society," 
Vol.  II,  p.  73.     Evan's  "Analysis,"  1755,  p.  13. 


l8  CHRISTOPHER   GIST'S   JOURNALS. 

those  on  the  east.  His  opinions  evidently  were  changed  by 
the  information  obtained  from  the  unfortunate  stranger  or 
Erie  Indians. 

In  the  year  1671,  under  authority  of  Governor  Berkeley,  a 
commission  was  granted  by  Major-General  Abrahame  Wood, 
"for  ye  finding  out  of  the  ebbing  and  flowing  of  ye  water 
behind  the  mountains  in  order  to  the  Discovery  of  the  South 
Sea."  Accordingly,  Thomas  Batts,  Thomas  Woods  and 
Robert  Fallam,  with  Jack  Nesan,  servant,  and  Perecute, 
chief  of  the  Appomattox  Indians,  as  guide,  left  the  town  of 
Appomattox,  near  where  Petersburgh  now  stands,  on  the 
first  day  of  September,  1671,  and  travelling  westward,  on  the 
4th  arrived  at  the  "  Sapong  Town,"  in  the  present  county  of 
Charlotte,  near  the  little  Roanoke  River ;  there  they  were 
joined  by  seven  Appomattox  Indians  and  a  Sapon  also,  as  a 
guide,  and  by  nightfall  of  the  day  following,  the  5th,  they 
reached  the  "  Hanohaski "  ^  Indian  town,  on  an  island  in  the 
Sapon  River,  (evidently  the  Long  Island  in  the  Roanoke,  op- 
posite the  mouth  of  Seneca  Creek,  in  Campbell  County).  On 
the  next  day  they  recommenced  their  journey,  leaving  Thomas 
Woods  at  the  Indian  town  "  dangerously  sick." 

On  the  7th  they  came  in  sight  of  the  mountains  (the  Blue 
Ridge,  in  Bedford  County) ;  on  the  8th  and  9th  they  passed 
along  the  Roanoke  River  and  over  the  Blue  Ridge.  Arriving 
at  a  town  of  the  Totero  Indians  "encircled  about  with 
mountains"  (probably  near  the  site  of  Salem  in  Roanoke 
County),  they  remained  three  days,  resting.  On  the  12th  they 
"  set  forward  afoot  leaving  their  horses  at  the  Totero  town," 
and  travelling  south  and  north,  as  the  path  went,  over  several 
high  mountains  and  deep,  descending  valleys.  Several  times 
crossing  the  Roanoke  River,  by  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon, 
Perecute's  ague  and  their  own  weariness  made  them  encamp 
1  Akenatzi  ? 


INTRODUCTORY   MEMOIR.  19 

"  by  the  side  of  the  Roanoke,  very  near  the  head  thereof,  at 
the  foot  of  a  very  high  peat  mountain."' 

On  the  13th  they  ascended  a  very  high  and  steep  mountain 
(probably  Craig's  Creek  Mountain,  in  Craig  County)  and  con- 
tinuing a  northwest  course  over  mountains  (evidently  Potts' 
and  Peters'  Mountains)  and  "  many  small  streams  and  rich 
meadows  with  grass  above  a  man's  hight,"  they  came  to  a 
very  steep  descent,  where  they  found  a  great  current  that 
emptied  itself,  as  they  supposed,  into  the  great  river  "  Nuth- 
uardly ; "  they  encamped  in  the  evening  by  the  side  of  this 
"great  current"  (probably  the  Greenbrier  River).  On  the 
14th,  their  path  continued  north  by  west  (in  the  present 
County  of  Greenbrier) ;  they  saw  "  to  the  southwest  a  curious 
prospect  of  hills  like  waves,"  and  "  Mr.  Batts  supposed  he  saw 
houses,  but  Mr.  Fallam  rather  took  them  to  be  white  cliffs," 
as  doubtless  they  were  the  limestone  cliffs  on  New  River ; 
"  they  marched  about  twenty  miles  this  day." 

On  the  15th  "they  came  to  a  large  current,  it  emptied 
itself  W.  and  by  N.  as  they  supposed  into  a.  great  river,"  (prob- 
ably the  Meadow  or  main  fork  of  the  Gauley  River,  between 
the  counties  of  Nicholas  and  Fayette).  On  the  i6th  they 
travelled  ten  miles,  when  "  they  had  sight  of  a  curious  river 
like  the  Thames  at  Chelsea,  but  had  a  fall  that  made  a  great 
noise ;  its  course  was  North  and  they  supposed  ran  west  about 
certain  pleasant  mountains  which  they  saw  to  the  westward." 
Here  they  found  Indian  fields  with  cornstalks  in  them  and 
understood  afterward  three  Mohetans  (Monakens  or  Tusca- 
roras)  had  lived  there  not  long  before.  They  found  the  river 
broad  as  the  Thames  at  Wapping.  They  supposed  by  the 
marks  that  it  flowed  there  about  three  feet,  but  ebbed  very 
slowly.' 

1  Probably  the  North  Mountain,  in  the  county  of  Montgomery. 

2  Clayton,  1688.    Force's  Tracts,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  20. 


30  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

On  the  17th  they  proclaimed  the  King  in  these  words  : 
"  Long  live  King  Charles  ye  2d  King  of  England  Scotland 
France  Ireland  and  Virginia  and  all  the  teritory  thereunto 
belonging ;  deffender  of  ye  faith."  Guns  were  fired  and  with 
a  pair  of  marking  irons  they  marked  trees  "  ist  C  R  "  for  his 
Sacred  Majesty ;  "  2d  W  B  "  for  the  governor ;  "  3d  A  W  "  for 
the  Major-General,  Abrahame  Wood  ;  another  for  Perecute, 
and  also  for  the  rest  of  the  company. 

They  had  reached  the  Kanawha  at  the  Great  Falls,  eighty 
miles  from  the  Ohio  River.  On  their  return  to  the  town  of 
the  Toteros  they  found  a  Mohetan  (Tuscarora)  Indian,  who 
was  sent  to  inquire  the  object  of  their  journey  ;  satisfying 
him  with  a  little  powder,  he  informed  them  they  had  been 
from  the  mountains  half  way  to  that  town,  and  at  the  next 
town  beyond  there  was  a  level  plain  with  abundance  of  salt. 
(This  description  applies  correctly  to  the  locality,  as  the  Falls 
are  about  half  way  by  the  road  from  Sewall's  mountain  to  the 
Salines,  above  Charleston,  where  there  are  wide  river  bot- 
toms.) 

They  left  the  Toteros  on  the  21st  and  on  the  24th  reached 
the  Hanahaskis  (Long  Island)  where  they  found  Mr.  Woods 
was  dead  and  buried.  Continuing  homeward  by  the  Sapong 
town  and  the  Appomattox  town  they  arrived  safe  at  Fort 
Henry  on  the  1st  of  October.  This  journey  is  remarkable 
for  being  the  very  earliest  exploration,  by  the  English,  to  the 
waters  of  the  Ohio,  and  about  the  same  time  of  the  discovery 
of  that  stream  claimed  by  La  Salle  at  the  Falls  of  the  Ohio. 

It  has  been  incorrectly  noticed  by  various  authors  :  Bev- 
erley's "  History  of  Virginia,  1722,"  p.  62.  Burke's  ditto,  as 
in  Beverley.  In  Coxe's  "Carolina,  Florida  and  the  River 
Mississippi,"  published  in  1722,  it  is  stated,  p.  120,  that  Colo- 
nel Wood,  inhabiting  at  the  Falls  of  James  River  from  the 
year  1654  to  1664,  discovered  at  several  times  several  branches 


INTRODUCTORY    MEMOIR.  il 

of  the  great  rivers  Ohio  and  Meschacehe,  "  and  further  that 
he  was  possessed,  about  twenty  years  ago,  of  the  Journal  of 
Mr.  Needham,  employed  by  the  aforesaid  Colonel."  Campbell's 
"  Virginia,"  pp.  268,  9.  See  also  "  State  of  the  British  Colo- 
nies in  North  America,  1755,"  p.  118. 

The  Kanawha  was  first  known  to  the  whites  as  "  Wood's 
River,"  so  called  for  Colonel  Abrahame  Wood,  the  originator 
of  the  expedition  which  discovered  it.  ("  Contest  in  America, 
by  an  impartial  hand,"  London,  1757,  p.  176.)  On  Fry  and 
Jefferson's  Map  of  Virginia  of  1751  it  is  marked  "Great  Ken- 
haway,"  called  also  "Wood's  River"  and  "New  River," 
North  American  Review,  January,  1839.  Parkman's  "Dis- 
covery of  the  Great  West."  Introduction,  p.  20,  "  The  Jour- 
nal and  Relation  of  a  New  Discovery  made  behind  the  Apu- 
leian  Mountains,  to  the  West  of  Virginia  Plantations."  Gene- 
ral Papers,  State  Paper  Office,  i,  21.  "New  York  Colonial 
History,"  Vol.  Ill,  p.  193. 

No  further  attempt  at  discovery  or  exploration  westward 
was  made  for  many  years,  although  away  at  the  north,  in 
1677,  Wentworth  Greenhalgh  journeyed  westward  from  Al- 
bany to  the  Seneca  villages,  near  the  Genesee  River.  Nar- 
rated in  the  "  New  York  Colonial  History,"  Vol.  Ill,  p.  250. 
In  1709,  and  for  several  years  subsequent,  it  was  not  known 
that  the  Potomac  River  flowed  through  the  Blue  Ridge.^ 

In  August,  17 16,  Governor  Spotswood,  of  Virginia,  with  a 
company  of  about  fifty  persons,  gentlemen,  rangers,  Indians 
and  servants,  made  his  famous  transmontane  expedition  of 
discovery. 

Proceeding  from  Williamsburgh  to  Germantown,  ten  miles 
below  the  Falls  of  Rappahannock  (the  present  Fredericks- 
burgh),  and  thence  by  easy  stages,  with  much  feasting  and 
parade,  on  the  thirty-sixth  day  the  party  reached  the  summit 

'Byrd  MSS.,  Vol.  II,  p.  125.    Richmond,  1866. 


22  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

of  the  Appalachian  Mountains  (Blue  Ridge),  at  the  pass  now 
known  as  the  "  Swift's  Run  Gap,"  in  the  counties  of  Madison 
and  Rockingham  ;  thence  they  descended  to  the  Shenandoah 
River,  which  they  named  the  "  Euphrates  ; "  crossed  it,  re- 
turned, and  encamped  on  the  right  bank,  at  "Spotswood  Camp," 
named  for  the  Governor.  Returning,  they  arrived  at  home  on 
the  17th  of  September,  after  an  absence  of  sixteen  weeks, 
Four  years  afterwards  the  new  county  of  Spotsylvania  was 
formed,  with  the  Shenandoah  for  its  western  boundary.' 

Colonel  William  Byrd,  one  of  the  most  intelligent  and  ac- 
complished men  in  Virginia,  wrote  in  1729  that  "we  hardly 
know  anything  of  the  Apalatean  mountains  that  are  no  where 
above  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles  from  the  sea,"  ^  and  farther 
"that  the  Sources  of  the  Potomac,  Roanoke  and  even  of  the  She- 
nandoah are  unknown  to  the  Virginian  authorities  ;  although 
woodsmen  tell  them  they  head  in  the  same  mountains  with  a 
branch  of  Mississippi."  Colonel  Byrd  calls  this  "conjectured 
Geography." ' 

In  1728  Colonel  Wm.  Byrd  and  the  Commissioners  of  Vir- 
ginia and  North  Carolina  surveyed  the  dividing  line  between 
these  two  provinces  from  Currituck  Inlet,  on  the  Atlantic, 
westward  in  a  straight  line  two  hundred  and  forty-one  miles 
to  Peter's  Creek,  in  the  present  county  of  Patrick.  Twenty- 
one  years  later,  in  1749,  Joshua  Fry  and  Peter  Jefferson,  with 
the  Commissioners  of  North  Carolina,  surveyed  the  line 
ninety  miles  further,  to  "  Steep  Rock  Creek,"  the  White  Top 
or  Laurel  Fork,  of  Holston  River,  in  the  present  county  of 
Grayson,  and  in  1779  Dr.  Thomas  Walker  and  Daniel  Smith 

•Journal  of  John  Fontaine,  in  the  "  Memoirs  of  a  Huguenot  Family," 
New  York,  1872.  Jones'  "  Present  State  of  Virginia,"  1724,  p.  14.  Camp- 
bell's "  History  of  Virginia,"  i860,  p.  387.  Hening's  "  Statutes  of  Vir- 
ginia," Vol.  IV,  p.  77. 

2 Burke's  "History  of  Virginia,"  Vol.  Ill,  p.  114. 

'Byrd's  "Virginia,"  Vol.  I,  p.  137.     Richmond,  1S66. 


INTRODUCTORY    MEMOIR.  23 

continued  the  survey  of  the  line  from  Steep  Rock  Creek  to 
the  Tennessee  River.  The  boundary-line  between  the  States 
of  Kentucky  and  Tennessee,  from  the  Tennessee  River  to  the 
Mississippi,  was  run  in  1819.' 

In  the  report  made  in  August,  1737,  of  the  "  Proceedings 
of  the  Commissioners  to  Lay  out  the  Bounds  of  the  Northern 
Neck  "  '  of  Virginia,  or  Lord  Fairfax's  Grant,  it  appears  that 
they  employed  Colonel  Wm.  Mayo,  who,  at  the  head  of  a 
party  of  surveyors,  in  1736,  explored  and  surveyed  the  Co- 
hongoronta,  or  Potomac,  up  to  its  head  spring,  in  a  ridge  of 
the  Alleghenies,  at  the  southwest  point  of  the  boundary 
between  Virginia  and  Maryland.  Near  it  they  found  waters 
flowing  northward  into  the  Monongahela  River,  the  southern 
fork  of  the  upper  Ohio.  At  that  point,  "  the  spring  head  of 
the  Potomac,  the  Fairfax  Stone  was  placed  by  the  Commis. 
sioners  at  a  subsequent  survey  in  1746."  ' 

The  first  of  our  American  race  who  seem  to  have  pene- 
trated the  canebrakes  of  what  has  since  been  termed  Ken- 
tucky, were  Dr.  Walker  and  Christopher  Gist,  both  of  Vir- 
ginia, and  James  Smith,  of  Pennsylvania.  Thomas  Walker 
was  born  in  King  and  Queen  County,  Virginia,  in  17 10. 
He  studied  medicine  and  became  a  skilful  physician.  His 
home  was  at  Castle  Hill,  Albemarle  County.  He  was  an  ex- 
tensive land  speculator.  In  1748  he  went  on  a  tour  of  dis- 
covery down  the  Holston.  In  the  month  of  March,  1750,  in 
company  with  five  others,  he  started  upon  a  trip  to  explore 
the  country  west  of  the  back  settlements  of  Virginia.  Be- 
fore his  return  he  penetrated  far  into  the  present  State  of 

* "  History  of  the  Dividing  Line,"  in  Byrd,  Vol.  I. 

'  Fry  and  Jefferson's  Map  of  Virginia.  "  Report  of  Survey."  Hen- 
ing's  "  Statutes,"  Vol.  IX,  p.  562. 

'Byrd,  Vol.11.  Mayo's  Map,  173.  Faulkner's  Report,  in  Kercheral's 
"  History  of  the  Valley  of  Virginia." 


24  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

Kentucky.  His  party  in  April  erected  a  small  cabin  in  what 
is  now  Knox  County,  the  first  one  probably  ever  built  by  an 
American  within  the  limits  of  that  State.  "  Walker's  Settle- 
ment" is  noted  on  some  of  the  old  maps.  He  died  at 
Castle  Hill,  in  1794.  He  ranked  high  in  Virginia,  as»is 
proved  by  his  frequent  appointments  under  that  colony.  He 
was  with  the  Virginia  troops  at  the  defeat  of  Braddock,  in 
175s,  of  which  he  gave  a  graphic  description  to  Judge  Yeates, 
in  August,  1776,  on  the  battle-field.  He  was  a  member  of 
the  Virginia  Assembly  in  1758.  In  1768,  Commissioner  from 
Virginia  at  the  Treaty  held  at  Fort  Stanwix  with  the  Indians 
of  the  Six  Nations.  In  1769  he  was  appointed,  with  Colonel 
Andrew  Lewis,  Commissioner,  relative  to  settling  a  boundary- 
line  with  the  Cherokees.  He  was  at  the  head  of  the  Com- 
mittee of  Louisa  County,  May  8,  1775  ;  also  member  of  the 
Virginia  Committee  of  Safety,  and  Delegate  to  the  Conven- 
tion of  Virginia,  1775-76,  and  to  the  House  of  Burgesses,  in 

1775- 

To  reconcile  the  conflicting  statements  relative  to  the  pre- 
cise year  of  the  first  visit  of  Dr.  Thomas  Walker  to  the  east- 
ern part  of  Kentucky  is  a  difficult  but  not  hopeless  task.  It 
appears  that  in  1747  Dr.  Walker,  with  a  small  party,  Colonel 
James  Wood,  Colonel  James  Pattin,  Captain  Charles  Camp- 
bell, and  others,  having  large  grants  of  land  to  the  west  of 
the  mountains,  explored  as  far  as  Powell's  Valley,  in  the 
present  Lee  County,  southwestern  Virginia,  near  the  great 
Laurel  Ridge  of  the  Alleghenies,  which  he  named  the  Cum- 
berland. 

Misled  by  information  as  to  the  distance  of  the  Ohio  River 
and  the  correct  course  to  be  taken  to  reach  it  expeditiously,  they 
turned  northeastwardly  and  came  to  the  heads  of  the  Totery 
or  Big  Sandy  River,  in  Buchanan  County,  which  they  named 
Frederick's  River,  after  the  Prince  of  Wales,  (now  Russell's 


INTRODUCTORY   MEMOIR.  2$ 

Fork).  Continuing  the  same  course,  they  struck  on  the  next 
Fork,  which  they  named  Louisa,  a  designation  it  still  retains  ; 
(on  Evans'  Map  of  1755  it  is  made  to  flow  to  the  Kanawha) 
passing  thence  eastward,  after  a  toilsome  journey  along  the 
foot  of  the  mountain  range  and  stream,  in  Giles  and  Bland 
Counties,  called  Walker's,  to  the  New  River,  and  thence  to 
Albemarle  County. 

Lewis  Evans,  in  his  "Analysis  of  a  Map  of  the  Middle 
Colonies  of  1755,"  says  :  "As  for  the  branches  of  the  Ohio, 
which  head  in  the  New  Virginia,  I  am  particularly  obliged  to 
Mr.  Thomas  Walker  for  the  intelligence  of  what  names  they 
bear  and  what  rivers  they  fall  into  northward  and  westward;" 
and  at  page  29  he  mentions  Louisa  as  a  branch  of  the  Ka- 
nawha, and  so  places  it  on  the  accompanying  map. 

The  Valley  of  the  Ohio  remained  unexplored  and  almost 
unknown  for  near  two  centuries  after  the  discovery  of  Amer- 
ica in  1492.* 

The  Spaniard,  Hernando  De  Soto,  reached  the  Mississippi 
in  1 541,  pausing  with  his  forces  on  the  eastern  bank  of  the 
mighty  stream  but  a  few  days,  to  build  boats  to  cross  it  and 
continue  westward  in  his  fruitless  search  for  a  land  abound- 
ing in  gold  and  silver.'  Jean  Nicollet  was  the  first  to  reach 
the  waters  of  the  upper  Mississippi.  In  1639  he  ascended 
the  Ottawa  from  the  St.  Lawrence;'  thence  across  Lake 
Huron  and  through  the  Straits  of  Mackinaw  to  Green  Bay, 
and  up  the  Fox  River  to  the  portage  across  the  Wisconsin 
River,  but  no  further.  The  route  by  the  Ottawa  was  usually 
taken  by  the  French  missionaries  and  fur  traders,  until  1669- 
70,  when  they  first  traversed  Lake  Erie  by  its  northern  shore 
and  thence  by  the  Detroit  River  to  Lake  Huron. 

*  "  Jesuit  Relations,"  1640. 

'  "  Histoire  de  la  Colonie  Franfaise,"  i866. 

*  Charlevoix. 


26  CHRISTOPHER   GIST'S   JOURNALS. 

The  Ohio,  the  "  Beautiful  River  "  of  the  Iroquois,  was  dis- 
covered by  Robert  Cavalier— the  Sieur  de  la  Salle— in  1670- 
71.  He  was  a  native  of  Rouen,  France;  came  to  Canada  and 
engaged  in  the  fur  trade.  Being  an  ardent  and  indefatigable 
explorer  and  ambitious  to  discover  new  countries,  he  was 
authorized  by  Talon,  the  Intendant  (Justice)  of  Canada,  to 
explore  southwest  and  south  for  the  discovery  of  a  passage 
to  the  South  Sea.  Among  the  Iroquois  near  Lake  Ontario, 
in  the  present  Western  New  York,  he  found  a  Shawnee 
prisoner  who  informed  him  of  the  Ohio. 

Procuring  a  guide  from  the  Onondagas,  he  proceeded  to 
the  Allegheny  River  and  descended  it  and  the  Ohio  as  far  as 
the  Falls,  at  the  site  of  the  present  city  of  Louisville,  Ken- 
tucky.' Then,  deserted  by  his  men,  he  returned  through  the 
forests  to  Canada,  subsisting  on  game  and  roots,  and  be- 
friended by  the  Indians  he  met  on  his  way.'  Three  years 
later  (1673)  Marquette  and  Joliet  reached  the  Mississippi  by 
way  of  the  Fox  and  Wisconsin  rivers.^  They  descended  it 
as  far  as  the  mouth  of  the  Arkansas  and  then  returned." 
They  saw  the  Ohio  at  its  junction  with  the  great  river  and 
noted  it  on  their  map  and  in  their  journal  as  the  Oubaskison 
(Wabash),  coming  from  the  country  inhabited  by  the  Chouo- 
nans  (Shawnese)  in  great  numbers. 

In  1682  La  Salle  made  his  great  voyage  of  discovery,  de- 
scending the  Mississippi  from  the  Illinois  to  its  mouth  ;  on 
his  way  he  remained  a  short  time  at  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio, 
which  was  noted  as  being  more  than  five  hundred  leagues  in 
length,  and  the  river  by  which  the  war  parties  of  the  Iroquois 
descended  to  make  war  against  the  Southern  Nations. 

'  Gravier. 
«  Ferland. 
8  La  Salle. 
*  Charlevoix. 


t 


INTRODUCTORY    MEMOIR,  27 

On  the  shore  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  La  Salle,  with  great 
ceremony,  proclaimed  possession  taken  for  Louis  XIV  of  all 
the  country  watered  by  the  Mississippi,  St.  Louis,  Ohio.  Al- 
legheny, and  their  tributaries.  For  more  than  fifty  years  after 
Its  discovery  by  La  Salle,  the  Ohio  above  the  Wabash  was 
unavailable  to  the  French  as  a  route  to  the  Mississippi 
owmgto  the  hostility  of  the  Iroquois,  in  whose  country  ii 
had  its  source. 

Early  in  the  eighteenth  century  emigrants  from  Canada 
came  by  way  of  the  Lakes  to  the  head  of  Lake  Michigan 
and  thence  to  the  Illinois  and  Mississippi,  or  by  the  Maumee 
and  Wabash,  forming  settlements  along  these  rivers  and  also  at 
Detroit  and  its  neighborhood,  while  the  Ohio  remained  still 
m  an  unknown  wilderness  and  of  minor  importance.  As  late 
as  i;so  to  1756  it  was  considered  by  the  French  authorities 
as  a  tributary  of  the  Wabash,  and  it  is  so  mentioned  in 
official  documents  and  laid  down  on  most  of  their  maps 

In  1726.  by  consent  of  the  Iroquois,  the  French  reconstructed 
the  fort   at   Niagara,  which   they  had  abandoned   in    1688 
By  1728-9  the  Shawanese  were  settled  along  the  Allegheny 
to  which  region  they  were  drawn  chiefly  by  the  measures 
adopted  by  the  Marquis  Vaudreuil  in  1724. 

The  way  being  now  open,  in  1729  M.  de  Lery.  Chief  En- 
gmeer  of  Canada,  with  a  detachment  of  troops,  crossed  from 
Lake  Erie  to  the  Chautauqua  Lake  and  thence  to  the  Cone 
wango  Creek  and  the  Allegheny  River,  descending  it  and  the 
Ohio.  They  made  a  careful  topographical  survey  of  the 
course  of  the  rivers,  with  observations  of  the  latitude,  longi- 
tude and  distances  as  far  as  the  Great  Miami. 

The  French,  down  to  the  surrender  of  Canada  to  the  British 
m  1763,  derived  their  right  against  that  of  the  Iroquois  to' 
the  Ohio  country,  asserting  it  to  be  theirs  by  virtue  of  its  dis- 
covery by  La  Salle,  and  of  their  resorting  to  it  when  no  other 


28  CHRISTOPHER   GISX'S   JOURNALS. 

Indians  occupied  it  but  their  allies,  the  Shawanese,  with 
whom  the  Iroquois  were  at  war.  The  latter  tribe  claimed  it 
by  reason  of  their  conquest  of  the  Shawanese,  and  the 
English  claimed  that  it  was  ceded  to  ttiem  by  the  Six  Nations 
at  the  Treaty  of  Lancaster,  1744.  It  is  remarkable,  however, 
that  the  French  never  made  any  attempts  to  form  settlements 
on  the  Ohio ;  confining  themselves  to  the  Wabash,  Illinois, 
Mississippi  and  Detroit. 

In  1753  Forts  Presque  Isle  (Erie,  Pennsylvania)  and  Le 
Boeuf  (now  Waterford,  Erie  County,  Pennsylvania)  were 
erected. 

In  1754  Forts  Franklin  (at  Venango,  now  Franklin)  and 
Du  Quesne  (now  Pittsburgh)  were  built,  and  in  1756  the  erec- 
tion of  Fort  Massac  (now  in  Massac  County,  Illinois)  com- 
pleted the  chain  of  forts  deemed  essential  by  French  policy 
for  the  connection  of  Canada  and  Louisiana  and  the  main- 
tenance of  possession  of  the  Valley  of  the  Ohio. 

The  steady  increase  of  the  English  settlements  towards 
the  AUeghenies,  the  great  numbers  of  their  traders  through, 
out  the  country  west  of  the  mountains,  and,  above  all,  the 
immense  land  grants  on  the  waters  of  the  Ohio  by  the  British 
King  and  the  Council  of  Virginia,  incited  the  French  to  vig- 
orous measures.  Accordingly,  Captain  Celeron  de  Bienville 
was  dispatched  by  Governor  de  la  Galissonniere,  in  1749,  to 
expel  the  English  traders  and  take  military  possession  of  the 
Ohio  country.  With  a  detachment  of  two  hundred  soldiers 
and  thirty  Indians  he  proceeded,  by  way  of  Chautauqua  Lake 
and  the  Conewango  Creek,  to  its  junction  with  the  Allegheny 
or  Ohio  as  he  called  it.  There  he  buried  a  leaden  plate,  on  the 
29th  of  July,  with  a  suitable  inscription,  as  a  monument  of 
having  retaken  possession  of  the  said  river  Ohio  and  branches 
and  the  lands  thereon.  This  plate  was  stolen  by  the  Seneca  In- 
dians, probably  directly  after  its  deposit,  and  sent  to  Colonel 


INTRODUCTORY   MEMOIR.  29 

William  Johnson.  (Governor  Clinton's  letter  to  Governor 
Hamilton.')  Letter  of  Governor  Clinton  to  Board  of  Trade, 
and  fac-simile  of  the  plate,  with  its  "devilish  writing,"  as  the 
Indian  chief  called  it,  who  took  it  to  Colonel  Johnson. 

Celeron,  with  his  flotilla,  proceeded  down  the  river,  deposit- 
ing plates  at  different  points,  generally  at  the  mouths  of 
streams  emptying  into  the  main  river.  The  inscriptions  on 
the  plates  were  all  alike,  except  the  name  of  the  place  and 
date  of  deposit.  A  number  of  them  were  found  in  after- 
years  ;  one,  at  the  confluence  of  the  Allegheny,  Monongahela 
and  Ohio,  at  Pittsburgh,  was  dated,  August  3,  1749,  at  the 
"  Three  Rivers."  (MSS.  copy  of  plate  by  Governor  Pownall 
in  my  possession.)  Another  was  found  in  1798  near  Marietta, 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Muskingum.  It  bore  date  August  16, 
1749,  at  the  entrance  of  the  river  "  Yenangue." "  The  last 
discovered  was  at  the  mouth  of  the  Great  Kanawha,  near 
Point  Pleasant,  in  April,  1846.  It  was  dated  August  18,  1749, 
at  the  entrance  of  the  river  Chinodahichatha.  (See  fac- 
simile and  account  of  in  the  "  History  of  Western  Virginia," 
by  de  Hass,  185 1,  p.  50).'  On  his  way  down  Celeron  encamped 
for  a  few  days  at  Logstown,  eighteen  miles  below  Pittsburgh, 
from  which  he  expelled  the  English  traders,  by  whom  he  sent 
letters  to  Governor  Hamilton  of  Pennsylvania,  dated  the  6th 
and  loth  of  August,  and  explained  the  object  of  his  mission.* 

In  1750  and  1751  Christopher  Gist,  the  Agent  of  the  Ohio 
Company  of  Virginia,  explored  the  greater  portion  of  the 
region  now  included  within  the  boundaries  of  the  States  of 
Ohio,  Kentucky  and  West  Virginia,  and  parts  of  Western 
Maryland  and  Southwestern  Pennsylvania.     These  explora- 

>  "  New  York  Colonial  History,"  Vol.  VI. 
2  Hildreth's"  Pioneer." 
'  See  "  Fort  Pitt "  for  complete  history. 
♦"  Colonial  Records." 


30  CHRISTOPHER    GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

tions  were  the  earliest  made,  so  far  west,  for  the  single  object 
of  examining  the  country,  as  they  are  the  first  also  of  which 
a  regular  journal  was  kept.  The  result  of  Gist's  journeys, 
however,  was  not  made  known  generally,  being  in  the  interest 
of  a  great  Land  Company;  but  in  1776  the  Journal  of  1750 
was  published  by  Governor  Pownall,  in  London,  in  the  Appen- 
dix to  his  "  Topographical  Description  of  North  America." 
At  that  time  but  few  copies  of  that  work  could  have  found 
their  way  to  America,  and  at  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary 
War  it  seemed  to  have  become  comparatively  scarce  and  is 
now  but  little  known.  The  second  Journal  has  never  before 
been  printed  here  or  elsewhere.  The  third,  1753,  was  printed 
for  James  Mease,  by  the  Historical  Society  of  Pennsylvania. 


FRY  AND  JEF 


JEF 


RSON  MAP,  1755. 


FOR  THE  HONORABLE  ROBERT  DINWIDDIE 

ESQUIRE,  GOVERNOR  &  COMMANDER 

OF  VIRGINIA. 


INSTRUCTIONS  GIVEN  M'  CHRISTOPHER  GIST  BY  THE 

COMMITTEE  OF  THE  OHIO  COMPANY  THE  1 1* 

DAY  OF  SEPTEMBER  1750. 


You  are  to  go  out  as  soon  as  possible  to  the  Westward  of 
the  great  Mountains,  and  carry  with  you  such  a  Number  of 
Men,  as  You  think  necessary,  in  Order  to  search  out  and 
discover  the  Lands  upon  the  River  Ohio,  &  other  adjoining 
Branches  of  the  Mississippi  down  as  low  as  the  great  Falls 
thereof  :  You  are  particularly  to  observe  the  Ways  &  Passes 
thro  all  the  Mountains  you  cross,  &  take  an  exact  Account 
of  the  Soil,  Quality,  &  Product  of  the  Land,  and  the  Wide- 
ness  and  Deepness  of  the  Rivers,  &  the  several  Falls  belong- 
ing to  them,  together  with  the  Courses  &  Bearings  of  the 
Rivers  &  Mountains  as  near  as  you  conveniently  can :  You 
are  also  to  observe  what  Nations  of  Indians  inhabit  there, 
their  Strength  &  Numbers,  who  they  trade  with,  &  in  what 
Comodities  they  deal. 

When  you  find  a  large  Quantity  of  good,  level  Land,  such 
as  you  think  will  suit  the  Company,  You  are  to  measure  the 
Breadth  of  it,  in  three  or  four  different  Places,  &  take  the 
Courses  of  the  River  and  Mountains  on  which  it  binds  in 
Order  to  judge  the  Quantity :  You  are  to  fix  the  Beginning 
&  Bounds  in  such  a  Manner  that  they  may  be  easily  found 
again  by  your  Description  ;  the  nearer  in  the  Land  lies,  the 

(30 


32  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

better,  provided  it  be  good  &  level,  but  we  had  rather  go 
quite  down  the  Mississippi  than  take  mean  broken  Land. 
After  finding  a  large  Body  of  good  level  Land,  you  are  not  to 
stop,  but  proceed  farther,  as  low  as  the  Falls  of  the  Ohio, 
that  We  may  be  informed  of  that  Navigation  ;  And  You  are 
to  take  an  exact  Account  of  all  the  large  Bodies  of  good  level 
Land,  in  the  same  Manner  as  above  directed,  that  the  Com- 
pany may  the  better  judge  where  it  will  be  most  convenient 
for  them  to  take  their  Land. 

You  are  to  note  all  the  Bodies  of  good  Land  as  you  go 
along,  tho  there  is  not  a  sufficient  Quantity  for  the  Com- 
pany's Grant,  but  You  need  not  be  so  particular  in  the  Men- 
suration of  that,  as  in  the  larger  Bodies  of  Land. 

You  are  to  draw  as  good  a  Plan  as  you  can  of  the  Country 
You  pass  thro  :  You  are  to  take  an  exact  and  particular 
Journal  of  all  your  Proceedings,  and  make  a  true  Report 
thereof  to  the  Ohio  Company. 

1750. — In  Complyance  with  my  Instructions  from  the  Com- 
mittee of  the  Ohio  Company  bearing  Date  the  1 1*  Day  of 
September  1750 

Wednesday  Oct'  31. — Set  out  from  Col°  Thomas  Cresap's  at 
the  old  Town  on  Potomack  River  in  Maryland,  and  went  along 
an  old  Indian  Path  N  30  E  about  1 1  Miles. 

Thursday  Nov  i. — Then  N  i  Mile  N  30  E  3  M  here  I  was 
taken  sick  and  stayed  all  Night. 

Friday  2. — N  30  E  6  M,  here  I  was  so  bad  that  I  was  not 
able  to  proceed  any  farther  that  Night,  but  grew  better  in  the 
Morning. 

Saturday  3. — N  8  M  to  Juniatta,  a  large  Branch  of  Susque- 
hannah,  where  I  stayed  all  Night. 

Sunday  4. — Crossed  Juniatta  and  went  up  it  S  55  W  about 
16  M. 

Monday  5. — Continued  the  same  Course  S  55  W  6  M   to 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO    COMPANY.  33 

the  Top  of  a  large  Mountain  called  the  Allegany  Mountain, 
here  our  Path  turned,  &  we  went  N  45  W  6  M  here  we  en- 
camped. 

Tuesday  6  Wednesday  7  and  Thursday  8. — Had  Snow  and 
such  bad  Weather  that  We  could  not  travel  for  three  Days ; 
but  I  killed  a  young  Bear  so  that  we  had  Provision  enough. 

Friday  9. — Set  out  N  70  W  about  8  M  here  I  crossed  a 
Creek  of  Susquehannah  and  it  raining  hard,  I  went  into  an 
old  Indian  Cabbin  where  I  stay'd  all. Night. 

Saturday  10. — Rain  and  Snow  all  Day  but  cleared  away  in 
the  Evening. 

Sunday  11. — Set  out  late  in  the  Morning  N  70  W  6  M 
crossing  two  Forks  of  a  Creek  of  Susquehannah,  here  the 
Way  being  bad,  We  encamped  and  I  killed  a  Turkey. 

Monday  12. — Set  out  N  45  W  8  M  crossed  a  great  Laurel 
Mountain. 

Tuesday  13. — Rain  and  Snow. 

Wednesday  14. — Set  out  N  45  W  6  M  to  Loylhannan  an 
old  Indian  Town  on  a  Creek  of  Ohio  called  Kiscominatis, 
then  N  I  M  NW  i  M  to  an  Indian's  Camp  on  the  said  Creek. 

Thursday  15. — The  Weather  being  bad  and  I  unwell  I 
stayed  here  all  Day :  The  Indian  to  whom  this  Camp  be- 
longed spoke  good  English  and  directed  Me  the  Way  to  his 
Town,  which  is  called  Shannopini  Town  :  He  said  it  was 
about  60  M  and  a  pretty  good  Way. 

Friday  16. — Set  out  S70  W  10  M. 
.  Saturday  17. — The  same  Course  (S  70  W)  15  M  to  an  old 
Indian's  Camp. 

Sunday  18. — I  was  very  sick,  and  sweated  myself  according 
to  the  Indian  Custom  in  a  Sweat-House,  which  gave  Me  Ease, 
and  my  Fever  abated. 

Monday  19. — Set  out  early  in  the  Morning  the  same  Course 
(S  70  W)  travelled  very  hard  about  20  M  to  a  small  Indian 


34  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's    JOURNALS. 

Town  of  the  Delawares  called  Shannopin  on  the  SE  Side  of 
the  River  Ohio,  where  We  rested  and  got  Corn  for  our 
Horses. 

Tuesday  20  Wednesday  21  Thursday  22  and  Friday  23.— I 
was  unwell  and  stayed  in  this  Town  to  recover  myself  ;  While 
I  was  here  I  took  an  Opportunity  to  set  my  Compass  pri- 
vately, &  took  the  Distance  across  the  River,  for  I  under- 
stood it  was  dangerous  to  let  a  Compass  be  seen  among  these 
Indians:  The  River  Ohio  is  76  Poles  wide  at  Shannopin 
Town  :  There  are  about  twenty  Families  in  this  Town  :  The 
Land  in  general  from  Potomack  to  this  Place  is  mean  stony 
and  broken,  here  and  there  good  Spots  upon  the  Creeks  and 
Branches  but  no  Body  of  it. 

Saturday  24. — Set  out  from  Shannopin's  Town,  and  swam 
our  Horses  across  the  River  Ohio,  &  went  down  the  River  S 
75  W  4  M,  N  75  W  7  M  W  2  M,  all  the  Land  from  Shan- 
nopin's Town  is  good  along  the  River,  but  the  Bottoms  not 
broad  ;  At  a  Distance  from  the  River  good  Land  for  Farming, 
covered  with  small  white  and  red  Oaks  and  tolerable  level ; 
fine  Runs  for  Mills  &c. 

Sunday  Nov  25.— Down  the  River  W  3  M,  NW  5  M  to 
Loggs  Town ;  the  Lands  these  last  8  M  very  rich  the  Bot- 
toms above  a  Mile  wide,  but  on  the  SE  side,  scarce  a  Mile 
wide,  the  Hills  high  and  steep.  In  the  Loggs  Town,  I  found 
scarce  any  Body  but  a  Parcel  of  reprobate  Indian  Traders, 
the  Chiefs  of  the  Indians  being  out  a  hunting :  here  I  was 
informed  that  George  Croghan  &  Andrew  Montour  who  were 
sent  upon  an  Embassy  from  Pensylvania  to  the  Indians,  were 
passed  about  a  Week  before  me.  The  People  in  this  Town, 
began  to  enquire  my  Business,  and  because  I  did  not  readily 
inform  them,  they  began  to  suspect  me,  and  said,  I  was  come 
to  settle  the  Indian's  Lands  and  they  knew  I  should  never 
go  Home  again  safe ;  I  found  this  Discourse  was  like  to  be  of 


COMMITTEE    OF   THE   OHIO   COMPANY.  3$ 

ill  Consequence  to  me,  so  I  pretended  to  speak  very  slight- 
ingly of  what  they  had  said  to  me,  and  enquired  for  Croghan 
(who  is  a  meer  Idol  among  his  Countrymen  the  Irish  Traders) 
and  Andrew  Montour  the  Interpreter  for  Pensylvania,  and 
told  them  I  had  a  Message  to  deliver  the  Indians  from  the 
King,  by  Order  of  the  President  of  Virginia,  &  for  that  Rea- 
son wanted  to  see  M  Montour :  This  made  them  all  pretty 
easy  (being  afraid  to  interrupt  the  King's  Message)  and 
obtained  me  Quiet  and  Respect  among  them,  otherwise  I 
doubt  not  they  woud  have  contrived  some  Evil  against  me — 
I  imediately  wrote  to  M  Croghan,  by  one  of  the  Trader's 
People. 

Monday  26. — Tho  I  was  unwell,  I  prefered  the  Woods  to 
such  Company  &  set  out  from  the  Loggs  Town  down  the 
River  NW  6  M  to  great  Beaver  Creek  where  I  met  one  Barny 
Curran  a  Trader  for  the  Ohio  Company,  and  We  continued 
together  as  far  as  Muskingum.  The  Bottoms  upon  the 
River  below  the  Logg's  Town  very  rich  but  narrow,  the  high 
Land  pretty  good  but  not  very  rich,  the  Land  upon  Beaver 
Creek  the  same  kind ;  From  this  Place  We  left  the  River 
Ohio  to  the  SE  &  travelled  across  the  Country. 

Tuesday  27. — Set  out  from  E  side  of  Beaver  Creek  NW  6 
M,  W  4  M  ;  up  these  two  last  Courses  very  good  high  Land, 
not  very  broken,  fit  for  farming. 

Wednesday  28. — Rained,  We  could  not  travel. 

Thursday  29. — W  6  M  thro  good  Land,  the  same  Course 
continued  6  M  farther  thro  very  broken  Land  ;  here  I  found 
myself  pretty  well  recovered,  &  being  in  Want  of  Provision, 
I  went  out  and  killed  a  Deer. 

Friday  30. — Set  out  S  45  W  12  M  crossed  the  last  Branch 
of  Beaver  Creek  where  one  of  Curran's  Men  &  myself  killed 
12  Turkeys. 


36  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

Saturday  Dec'  i. — N  45  W  lo  M  the  Land  high  and  tolera- 
ble good. 

Note;  by  M'  Gist's  Plat  he  makes  these  2  Courses  N  45  W  lo  M,  &  N 
45  W  8  M,  to  be  W  8  M  and  N  45  W  6  M. 

Sunday  2. — N  45  W  8  M  the  same  Sort  of  Land,  but  near 
the  Creeks  bushy  and  very  full  of  Thorns. 

Monday  3. — Killed  a  Deer,  and  stayed  in  our  Camp  all  Day. 

Tuesday  4. — Set  out  late  S  45  W  about  4  M  here  I  killed 
three  fine  fat  Deer,  so  that  tho  we  were  eleven  in  Company, 
We  had  great  Plenty  of  Provision. 

Wednesday  5. — Set  out  down  the  Side  of  a  Creek  called 
Elk's  Eye  Creek  S  70  W  6  M,  good  Land,  but  void  of  Timber, 
Meadows  upon  the  Creek,  fine  Runs  for  Mills. 

Thursday  6. — Rained  all  Day  so  that  we  were  obliged  to 
continue  in  our  Camp. 

Friday  7. — Set  out  SW  8  M  crossing  the  said  Elk's  Eye 
Creek  to  a  Town  of  the  Ottaways,  a  Nation  of  French  Indians ; 
an  old  French  Man  (named  Mark  Coonce)  who  had  married 
an  Indian  Woman  of  the  six  Nations  lived  here ;  the  Indians 
were  all  out  a  hunting ;  the  old  Man  was  very  civil  to  me,  but 
after  I  was  gone  to  my  Camp,  upon  his  understanding  I  came 
from  Virginia,  he  called  Me  the  Big  Knife.  There  are  not 
above  six  or  eight  Families  belonging  to  this  Town. 

Saturday  8. — Stayed  in  tlie  Town. 

Sunday  9. — Set  out  down  the  said  Elk's  Eye  Creek  S  45  W 
6  M  to  Margarets  Creek  a  Branch  of  the  said  Elk's  Eye 
Creek. 

Monday  Dec  10. — The  same  Course  (S  45  W)  2  M  to  a  large 
Creek. 

Tuesday  11. — The  same  Course  12  M  killed  2  Deer. 

Wednesday  12. — The  same  Course  8  M  encamped  by  the 
Side  of  Elk's  Eye  Creek. 

Thursday  13. — Rained  all  Day. 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO   COMPANY.  37 

Friday  14. — Set  out  W  5  M  to  Muskingum  a  Town  of  the 
Wyendotts.  The  Land  upon  Elk's  Eye  Creek  is  in  general 
very  broken,  the  Bottoms  narrow.  The  Wyendotts  or  little 
Mingoes  are  divided  between  the  French  and  English,  one 
half  of  them  adhere  to  the  first,  and  the  other  half  are  firmly 
attached  to  the  latter.  The  Town  of  Muskingum  consists  of 
about  one  hundred  Families.  When  We  came  within  Sight 
of  the  Town,  We  perceived  English  Colours  hoisted  on  the 
King's  House,  and  at  George  Croghan's ;  upon  enquiring  the 
Reason  I  was  informed  that  the  French  had  lately  taken 
several  English  Traders,  and  that  M'  Croghan  had  ordered 
all  the  White  Men  to  come  into  this  Town,  and  had  sent 
Expresses  to  the  Traders  of  the  lower  Towns,  and  among  the 
Pickweylinees  ;  and  the  Indians  had  sent  to  their  People  to 
come  to  Council  about  it. 

Saturday  15  &  Sunday  16. — Nothing  remarkable  happened. 

Monday  17. — Came  into  Town  two  Traders  belonging  to 
M  Croghan,  and  informed  Us  that  two  of  his  People  were 
taken  by  40  French  Men,  &  twenty  French  Indians  who  had 
carried  them  with  seven  Horse  Loads  of  Skins  to  a  new 
Fort  that  the  French  were  building  on  one  of  the  Branches 
of  Lake  Erie. 

Tuesday  18. — I  acquainted  M'  Croghan  and  Andrew  Mon- 
tour with  my  Business  with  the  Indians,  &  talked  much  of  a 
Regulation  of  Trade  with  which  they  were  much  pleased,  and 
treated  Me  very  kindly. 

From  Wednesday  19  to  Monday  24. — Nothing  remarkable. 

Tuesday  25. — This  being  Christmass  Day,  I  intended  to 
read  Prayers,  but  after  inviting  some  of  the  White  Men,  they 
informed  each  other  of  my  Intentions,  and  being  of  several 
different  Persuasions,  and  few  of  them  inclined  to  hear  any 
Good,  they  refused  to  come.  But  one  Thomas  Barney  a 
Black  Smith  who  is  settled  there  went  about  and  talked  to 


38  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

them,  &  then  several  of  them  came ;  and  Andrew  Montour 
invited  several  of  the  well  disposed  Indians,  who  came  freely; 
by  this  Time  the  Morning  was  spent,  and  I  had  given  over 
all  Thoughts  of  them,  but  seeing  Them  come,  to  oblige  All, 
and  offend  None,  I  stood  up  and  said.  Gentlemen,  I  have  no 
Design  or  Intention  to  give  Offence  to  any  particular  Sec- 
tary or  Religion,  but  as  our  King  indulges  Us  all  in  a  Liberty 
of  Conscience  and  hinders  none  of  You  in  the  Exercise  of 
your  religious  Worship,  so  it  would  be  unjust  in  You,  to 
endeavour  to  stop  the  Propagation  of  His  ;  The  Doctrine  of 
Salvation  Faith,  and  good  Works,  is  what  I  only  propose  to 
treat  of,  as  I  find  it  extracted  from  the  Homilies  of  the  Church 
of  England,  which  I  then  read  them  in  the  best  Manner  I 
coud,  and  after  I  had  done  the  Interpreter  told  the  Indians 
what  I  had  read,  and  that  it  was  the  true  Faith  which  the 
great  King  and  His  Church  recomended  to  his  Children  :  the 
Indians  seemed  well  pleased,  and  came  up  to  Me  and  returned 
Me  their  Thanks  ;  and  then  invited  Me  to  live  among  Them, 
and  gave  Me  a  Name  in  their  Language  Annosanah  :  the  In- 
terpreter told  Me  this  was  a  Name  of  a  good  Man  that  had 
formerly  lived  among  them,  and  their  King  said  that  must  be 
always  my  Name,  for  which  I  returned  them  Thanks  ;  but  as 
to  living  among  them  I  excused  myself  by  saying  I  did  not 
know  whether  the  Governor  woud  give  Me  Leave,  and  if  he  did 
the  French  woud  come  and  carry  me  away  as  they  had  done  the 
English  Traders,  to  which  they  answered  I  might  bring  great 
Guns  and  make  a  Fort,  that  they  had  now  left  the  French,  and 
were  very  desirous  of  being  instructed  in  the  Principles  of 
Christianity  ;  that  they  liked  Me  very  well  and  wanted  Me  to 
marry  Them  after  the  Christian  Manner,  and  baptize  their 
Children ;  and  then  they  said  they  woud  never  desire  to 
return  to  the  French,  or  suffer  Them  or  their  Priests  to  come 
near  them  more,  for  they  loved  the  English,  but  had  seen  little 


COMMITTEE    OF   THE    OHIO    COMPANY.  39 

Religion  among  Them :  and  some  of  their  great  Men  came 
and  wanted  Me  to  baptize  their  Children  ;  for  as  I  had  read 
to  Them  and  appeared  to  talk  about  Religion  they  took  Me  to 
be  a  Minister  of  the  Gospel ;  Upon  which  I  desired  M'  Mon- 
tour (the  Interpreter)  to  tell  Them,  that  no  Minister  coud 
venture  to  baptize  any  Children,  until  those  that  were  to  be 
Sureties  for  Them,  were  well  instructed  in  the  Faith  them- 
selves, and  that  this  was  according  to  the  great  King's 
Religion,  in  which  He  desired  his  Children  shoud  be  instruc- 
ted &  We  dare  not  do  it  in  any  other  Way,  than  was  by  Law 
established,  but  I  hoped  if  I  coud  not  be  admitted  to  live 
among  them,  that  the  great  King  woud  send  Them  proper 
Ministers  to  exercise  that  Office  among  them,  at  which  they 
seemed  well  pleased ;  and  one  of  Them  went  and  brought 
Me  his  Book  (which  was  a  Kind  contrived  for  Them  by  the 
French  in  which  the  Days  of  the  Week  were  so  marked  that 
by  moving  a  Pin  every  Morning  they  kept  a  pretty  exact 
Account  of  the  Time)  to  shew  Me  that  He  understood  Me, 
and  that  He  and  his  Family  always  observed  the  Sabbath  Day. 

Wednesday  Dec'  26. — This  Day  a  Woman,  who  had  been  a 
long  Time  a  Prisoner,  and  had  deserted,  &  been  retaken,  and 
brought  into  the  Town  on  Christmass  Eve,  was  put  to  Death 
in  the  following  manner  :  They  carried  her  without  the  Town, 
&  let  her  loose,  and  when  she  attempted  to  run  away,  the 
Persons  appointed  for  that  Purpose  pursued  her,  &  struck  Her 
on  the  Ear,  on  the  right  Side  of  her  Head,  which  beat  her 
flat  on  her  Face  on  the  Ground  ;  they  then  stuck  her  several 
Times,  thro  the  Back  with  a  Dart,  to  the  Heart.scalped  Her, 
&  threw  the  Scalp  in  the  Air,  and  another  cut  off  her  Head  : 
There  the  dismal  Spectacle  lay  till  the  Evening,  &  then  Barny 
Curran  desired  Leave  to  bury  Her,  which  He,  and  his  Men, 
and  some  of  the  Indians  did  just  at  Dark. 

From  Thursday  Dec'  27  to  Thursday  Jan"  3  1751. — Nothing 
remarkable  happened  in  the  Town. 


40  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

Friday  Jan  4. — One  Teafe  (an  Indian  Trader)  came  to 
Town  from  near  Lake  Erie,  &  informed  Us,  that  the  Wyen- 
dott  Indians  had  advised  Him  to  keep  clear  of  the  Ottaways 
(these  are  a  Nation  of  Indians  firmly  attached  to  the  French, 
&  inhabit  near  the  Lakes)  &  told  Him  that  the  Branches  of 
the  Lakes  are  claimed  by  the  French ;  but  that  all  the 
Branches  of  Ohio  belonged  to  Them,  and  their  Brothers  the 
English,  and  that  the  French  had  no  Business  there,  &  that 
it  was  expected  that  the  other  Part  of  the  Wyendott  Nation 
woud  desert  the  French  and  come  over  to  the  English  Inter- 
est, &  join  their  Brethren  on  the  Elk's  Eye  Creek,  &  build  a 
strong  Fort  and  Town  there. 

From  Saturday  5  to  Tuesday  8. — The  Weather  still  contin- 
uing bad,  I  stayed  in  the  Town  to  recruit  my  Horses,  and 
tho  Corn  was  very  dear  among  the  Indians,  I  was  obliged  to 
feed  them  well,  or  run  the  Risque  of  losing  them  as  I  had  a 
great  Way  to  travel. 

Wednesday  9. — The  Wind  Southerly,  and  the  Weather 
something' warmer :  this  Day  came  into  Town  two  Traders 
from  among  the  Pickwaylinees  (these  are  a  Tribe  of  the 
Twigtwees)  and  brought  News  that  another  English  Trader 
was  taken  prisoner  by  the  French,  and  that  three  French 
Soldiers  had  deserted  and  come  over  to  the  English,  and  sur- 
rendered themselves  to  some  of  the  Traders  of  the  Pick 
Town,  &  that  the  Indians  woud  have  put  them  to  Death,  to 
revenge  their  taking  our  Traders,  but  as  the  French  Prisoners 
had  surrendered  themselves,  the  English  woud  not  let  the 
Indians  hurt  them,  but  had  ordered  them  to  be  sent  under 
the  Care  of  three  of  our  Traders  and  delivered  at  this  Town, 
to  George  Croghan. 

Thursday  10. — Wind  still  at  South  and  warm. 

Friday  11. — This  Day  came  into  Town  an  Indian  from  over 
the  Lakes  &  confirmed  the  News  we  had  heard. 


COMMITTEE   OF    THE    OHIO    COMPANY.  4I 

Saturday  12. — We  sent  away  our  People  towards  the  lower 
Town  intending  to  follow  them  the  next  Morning,  and  this 
Evening  We  went  into  Council  in  the  Wyendott's  King's 
House — The  Council  had  been  put  off  a  long  Time  expecting 
some  of  their  great  Men  in,  but  few  of  them  came,  &  this 
Evening  some  of  the  King's  Council  being  a  little  disordered 
with  Liquor,  no  Business  coud  be  done,  but  We  were  desired 
to  come  next  Day. 

Sunday  Jan'"  13.— No  Business  done. 

Monday  14. — This  Day  George  Croghan,  by  the  Assistance 
of  Andrew  Montour,  acquainted  the  King  and  Council  of 
this  Nation  (by  presenting  them  four  Strings  of  Wampum) 
that  the  great  King  over  the  Water,  their  Roggony  [Father] 
had  sent  under  the  Care  of  the  Governor  of  Virginia,  their 
Brother,  a  large  Present  of  Goods  which  was  now  landed  safe 
in  Virginia,  &  the  Governor  had  sent  Me  to  invite  Them  to 
come  and  see  Him,  &  partake  of  their  Father's  Charity  to  all 
his  Children  on  the  Branches  of  Ohio.  In  Answer  to  which 
one  of  the  Chiefs  stood  up  and  said,  "  That  their  King  and 
"  all  of  Them  thanked  their  Brother  the  Governor  of  Virginia 
"  for  his  Care,  and  Me  for  bringing  them  the  News,  but  they 
"  coud  not  give  Me  an  Answer  untill  they  had  a  full  or  gen- 
"  eral  Council  of  the  several  Nations  of  Indians  which  coud 
"not  be  till  next  Spring :  &  so  the  King  and  Council  shaking 
"  Hands  with  Us,  We  took  our  Leave. 

Tuesday  15. — We  left  Muskingum,  and  went  W  5  M,  to. 
the  White  Woman's  Creek,  on  which  is  a  small  Town ;  this. 
White  Woman  was  taken  away  from  New  England,  when  she 
was  not  above  ten  Years  old,  by  the  French  Indians  ;  She  is 
now  upwards  of  fifty,  and  has  an  Indian  Husband  and  several 
Children  —  Her  name  is  Mary  Harris,  she  still  remembers 
they  used  to  be  very  religious  in  New  England,  and  wonders 
how  the  White  Men  can  be  so  wicked  as  she  has  seen  them 
in  these  Woods. 
4 


42  CHRISTOPHER   GISTS   JOURNALS. 

Wednesday  i6. — Set  out  SW  25  M,  to  Licking  Creek — The 
Land  from  Muskingum  to  this  Place  rich  but  broken^ — Upon 
the  N  Side  of  Licking  Creek  about  6  M  from  the  Mouth,  are 
several  Salt  Licks,  or  Ponds,  formed  by  little  Streams  or 
Dreins  of  Water,  clear  but  of  a  blueish  Colour,  &  salt  Taste 
the  Traders  and  Indians  boil  their  Meat  in  this  Water, 
which  (if  proper  Care  be  not  taken)  will  sometimes  make  it 
too  salt  to  eat. 

Thursday  17. — Set  out  W  5  M,  SW  15  M,  to  a  great  Swamp. 

Friday  18. — Set  out  from  the  great  Swamp  SW  15  M. 

Saturday  19. — W  15  M  to  Hockhockin  a  small  Town  with 
only  four  or  five  Delaware  Families. 

Sunday  20. — The  Snow  began  to  grow  thin,  and  the 
Weather  warmer ;  Set  out  from  Hockhockin  S  5  M,  then  W 
5  M,  then  SW  5  M,  to  the  Maguck  a  little  Delaware  Town 
of  about  ten  Families  by  the  N  Side  of  a  plain  or  clear  Field 
about  5  M  in  Length  NE  &  SW  &  2  M  broad,  with  a  small 
Rising  in  the  Middle,  which  gives  a  fine  Prospect  over  the 
whole  Plain,  and  a  large  Creek  on  the  N  Side  of  it  called  Sci- 
odoe  Creek.  All  the  Way  from  Licking  Creek  to  this  Place 
is  fine  rich  level  Land,  with  large  Meadows,  fine  Clover  Bot- 
toms &  spacious  Plains  covered  with  wild  Rye :  the  Wood 
chiefly  large  Walnuts  and  Hickories,  here  and  there  mixed 
with  Poplars  Cherry  Trees  and  Sugar  Trees. 

From  Monday  21  to  Wednesday  23 — Stayed  in  the  Maguck 
Town. 

Thursday  24. — Set  out  from  the  Maguck  Town  S  about 
1 5  M,  thro  fine  rich  level  Land  to  a  small  Town  called  Har- 
rickintoms  consisting  of  about  five  or  six  Delaware  Families, 
on  the  SW  Sciodoe  Creek. 

Friday  25. — The  Creek  being  very  high  and  full  of  Ice,  We 
coud  not  ford  it,  and  were  obliged  to  go  down  it  on  the  SE 
Side  SE  4  M  to  the  Salt  Lick  Creek — about  i  M  up  this  Creek 


COMMITTEE    OF    THE   OHIO    COMPANY.  43 

on  the  S  Side  is  a  very  large  Salt  Lick,  the  Streams  which 
run  into  this  Lick  are  very  salt,  &  tho  clear  leave  a  blueish 
Sediment :  The  Indians  and  Traders  make  salt  for  their 
Horses  of  this  Water,  by  boiling  it ;  it  has  at  first  a  blueish 
Colour,  and  somewhat  bitter  Taste,  but  upon  being  dissolved 
in  fair  Water  and  boiled  a  second  Time,  it  becomes  tolerable 
pure  Salt. 

Saturday  26. — Set  out  S  2  M,  SW  14  M. 

Sunday  27. — S  12  M  to  a  small  Delaware  Town  of  about 
twenty  Families  on  the  SE  Side  of  Sciodoe  Creek — We 
lodged  at  the  House  of  an  Indian  whose  Name  was  Windaug- 
halah,  a  great  Man  and  Chief  of  this  Town,  &  much  in  the 
English  Interest.  He  entertained  Us  very  kindly,  and  ordered 
a  Negro  Man  that  belonged  to  him  to  feed  our  Horses  well ; 
this  Night  it  snowed,  and  in  the  Morning  tho  the  Snow  was 
six  or  seven  Inches  deep,  the  wild  Rye  appeared  very  green 
and  flourishing  thro  it,  and  our  Horses  had  fine  Feeding. 

Monday  Jan^  28. — We  went  into  Council  with  the  Indians 
of  this  Town,  and  after  the  Interpreter  had  informed  them  of 
his  Instructions  from  the  Governor  of  Pensylvania,  and 
given  them  some  Cautions  in  Regard  to  the  French,  they 
returned  for  Answer  as  follows.  The  Speaker  with  four 
Strings  of  Wampum  in  his  Hand  stood  up,  and  addressing 
Himself  as  to  the  Governor  of  Pensylvania,  said,  "  Brothers, 
"  We  the  Delawares  return  You  our  hearty  Thanks  for  the 
"  News  You  have  sent  Us,  and  We  assure  You,  We  will  not 
"  hear  the  Voice  of  any  other  Nation  for  We  are  to  be  directed 
"  by  You  our  Brothers  the  English,  &  by  none  else  :  We  shall 
"  be  glad  to  hear  what  our  Brothers  have  to  say  to  Us  at  the 
"  Loggs  Town  in  the  Spring,  and  to  assure  You  of  our  hearty 
"  Good  will  &  Love  to  our  Brothers  We  present  You  with 
"  these  four  Strings  of  Wampum  This  is  the  last  Town  of 
the  Delawares  to  the  Westward — The  Delaware  Indians  by 


44  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

the  best  Accounts  I  coud  gather  consist  of  about  500  fight- 
ing Men  all  firmly  attached  to  the  English  Interest,  they  are 
not  properly  a  Part  of  the  six  Nations,  but  are  scattered 
about  among  most  of  the  Indians  upon  the  Ohio,  and  some  of 
them  among  the  six  Nations,  from  whom  they  have  Leave  to 
hunt  upon  their  Lands. 

Tuesday  29.— Set  out  S  W  5  M,  S  S  M,  to  the  Mouth  of  Sciodoe 
Creek  opposite  to  the  Shannoah  Town,  here  We  fired  our 
Guns  to  alarm  the  Traders,  who  soon  answered,  and  came  and 
ferryed  Us  over  to  the  Town — The  Land  about  the  Mouth  of 
Sciodoe  Creek  is  rich  but  broken  fine  Bottoms  upon  the  River 
&  Creek— The  Shannoah  Town  is  situate  upon  both  Sides 
the  River  Ohio,  just  below  the  Mouth  of  Sciodoe  Creek,  and 
contains  about  300  Men,  there  are  about  40  Houses  on  the  S 
Side  of  the  River  and  about  100  on  the  N  Side,  with  a  Kind 
of  State-House  of  about  90  Feet  long,  with  a  light  Cover  of 
Bark  in  w""  they  hold  their  Councils — The  Shanaws  are  not  a 
Part  of  the  six  Nations,  but  were  formerly  at  Variance  with 
them,  tho  now  reconciled  :  they  are  great  Friends  to  the 
English  who  once  protected  them  from  the  Fury  of  the  six 
Nations,  which  they  gratefully  remember. 

Wednesday  30. — We  were  conducted  into  Council,  where 
George  Croghan  delivered  sundry  Speeches  from  the  Gov- 
ernment of  Pensylvania  to  the  Chiefs  of  this  Nation,  in 
which  He  informed  them,  "That  two  Prisoners  who  had  been 
"  taken  by  the  French,  and  had  made  their  Escape  from  the 
"  French  Ofificer  at  Lake  Erie  as  he  was  carrying  them  towards 
"  Canada  brought  News  that  the  French  offered  a  large  Sum 
"  of  Money  to  any  Person  who  would  bring  to  them  the  said 
"  Croghan  and  Andrew  Montour  the  Interpreter  alive,  or  if 
"  dead  their  Scalps ;  and  that  the  French  also  threatened 
"these  Indians  and  the  Wyendotts  with  War  in  the  Spring  " 
the  same  Persons  farther  said  "  that  they  had  seen  ten  French 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO    COMPANY.  45 

"  Canoes  loaded  with  Stores  for  a  new  Fort  they  designed  on 
the  S  Side  Lake  Erie.  M'  Croghan  also  informed  them  of 
several  of  our  Traders  having  been  taken,  and  advised  them 
to  keep  their  Warriors  at  Home,  until  they  coud  see  what 
the  French  intended  which  he  doubted  not  woud  appear  in 
the  Spring — Then  Andrew  Montour  informed  this  Nation  as 
He  had  done  the  Wyendotts  &  Delawares  "  That  the  King  of 
"  Great  Britain  had  sent  Them  a  large  Present  of  Goods,  in 
"  Company  with  the  six  Nations,  which  was  under  the  Care 
"of  the  Governor  of  Virginia,  who  had  sent  Me  out  to  invite 
"them  to  come  and  see  Him,  &  partake  of  their  Father's 
"Present  next  Summer"  to  which  We  received  this  Answer — 
Big  Hannaona  their  Speaker  taking  in  his  Hand  the  several 
Strings  of  Wampum  which  had  been  given  by  the  English, 
He  said  "  These  are  the  Speeches  received  by  Us  from  your 
"  great  Men  :  From  the  Beginning  of  our  Friendship,  all  that 
"our  Brothers  the  English  have  told  Us  has  been  good  and 
"  true,  for  which  We  return  our  hearty  Thanks  "  Then  taking 
up  four  other  Strings  of  Wampum  in  his  Hand,  He  said 
"  Brothers  I  now  speak  the  Sentiments  of  all  our  People  ; 
"when  first  our  Forefathers  did  meet  the  English  our  Bro- 
"  thers,  they  found  what  our  Brothers  the  English  told  them 
"  to  be  true,  and  so  have  We— We  are  but  a  small  People,  & 
"  it  is  not  to  Us  only  that  You  speak,  but  to  all  Nations— We 
"  shall  be  glad  to  hear  what  our  Brothers  will  say  to  Us  at  the 
"  Loggs  Town  in  the  Spring,  &  We  hope  that  the  Friendship 
"  now  subsisting  between  Us  &  our  Brothers,  will  last  as  long 
"  as  the  Sun  shines,  or  the  Moon  gives  Light — We  hope  that 
"  our  Children  will  hear  and  believe  what  our  Brothers  say  to 
"  them,  as  We  have  always  done,  and  to  assure  You  of  our 
"hearty  Good-Will  towards  You  our  Brothers,  We  present 
"You  with  these  four  Strings  of  Wampum"  After  the 
Council  was  over  they  had  much  Talk  about  sending  a  Guard 


46  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

with  Us  to  the  Pickwaylinees  Towns  (these  are  a  Tribe  of 
Twigtwees)  which  was  reckoned  near  200  Miles,  but  after 
long  Consultation  (their  King  being  sick)  they  came  to  no 
Determination  about  it. 

From  Thursday  Jan  31  To  Monday  Feb*^  11. — Stayed  in  the 
Shannoah  Town,  while  I  was  here  the  Indians  had  a  very 
extraordinary  Kind  of  a  Festival,  at  which  I  was  present  and 
which  I  have  exactly  described  at  the  End  of  my  Journal — 
As  I  had  particular  Instructions  from  the  President  of  Vir- 
ginia to  discover  the  Strength  &  Numbers  of  some  Indian 
Nations  to  the  Westward  of  Ohio  who  had  lately  revolted 
from  the  French,  and  had  some  Messages  to  deliver  them 
from  Him,  I  resolved  to  set  out  for  the  Twigtwee  Town. 

Tuesday  12.— Having  left  my  Boy  to  take  Care  of  my  Horses 
in  the  Shannoah  Town,  &  supplied  myself  with  a  fresh  Horse 
to  ride,  I  set  out  with  my  old  Company  viz  George  Croghan 
Andrew  Montour,  Robert  Kallandar,  and  a  Servant  to  carry 
our  Provisions  &c  NW  10  M. 

Wednesday  13. — The  same  Course  (NW)  about  35  M. 

Thursday  14. — The  same  Course  about  30  M. 

Friday  15. — The  same  Course  15  M.  We  met  with  nine 
Shannoah  Indians  coming  from  one  of  the  Pickwaylinees 
Towns,  where  they  had  been  to  Council,  they  told  Us  there 
were  fifteen  more  of  them  behind  at  the  Twigtwee  Town, 
waiting  for  the  Arrival  of  the  Wawaughtanneys,  who  are  a 
Tribe  of  the  Twigtwees,  and  were  to  bring  with  them  a  Shan- 
noah Woman  and  Child  to  deliver  to  their  Men  that  were  be- 
hind :  this  Woman  they  informed  Us  had  been  taken  Prisoner 
last  Fall,  by  some  of  the  Wawaughtanney  Warriors  thro  a 
Mistake,  which  had  like  to  have  engaged  these  Nations  in  a 
War. 

Saturday  16. — Set  out  the  same  Course  (NW)  about  35  M, 
to  the  little  Miamee  River  or  Creek 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO   COMPANY.  47 

Sunday  17. — Crossed  the  little  Miamee  River,  and  altering 
our  Course  We  went  SW  25  M,  to  the  big  Miamee  River, 
opposite  the  Twigtwee  Town.  All  the  Way  from  the  Shan- 
noah  Town  to  this  Place  (except  the  first  20  M  which  is  broken) 
is  fine,  rich  level  Land,  well  timbered  with  large  Walnut,  Ash, 
Sugar  Trees,  Cherry  Trees  &c,  it  is  well  watered  with  a  great 
Number  of  little  Streams  or  Rivulets,  and  full  of  beautiful 
natural  Meadows,  covered  with  wild  Rye,  blue  Grass  and 
Clover,  and  abounds  with  Turkeys,  Deer,  Elks  and  most  Sorts 
of  Game  particularly  Buffaloes,  thirty  or  forty  of  which  are 
frequently  seen  feeding  in  one  Meadow :  In  short  it  wants 
Nothing  but  Cultivation  to  make  it  a  most  delightfuU  Country 
— The  Ohio  and  all  the  large  Branches  are  said  to  be  full  of 
fine  Fish  of  several  Kinds,  particularly  a  Sort  of  Cat  Fish  of 
a  prodigious  Size  ;  but  as  I  was  not  there  at  the  proper  Season, 
I  had  not  an  opportunity  of  seeing  any  of  them — The  Traders 
had  always  reckoned  it  200  M,  from  the  Shannoah  Town  to 
the  Twigtwee  Town,  but  by  my  Computation  I  could  make  it 
no  more  than  1 50 — The  Miamee  River  being  high,  We  were 
obliged  to  make  a  Raft  of  old  Loggs  to  transport  our  Goods  ■ 
and  Saddles  and  swim  our  Horses  over — After  firing  a  few 
Guns  and  Pistols,  &  smoaking  in  the  Warriours  Pipe,  who 
came  to  invite  Us  to  the  Town  (according  to  their  Custom  of 
inviting  and  welcoming  Strangers  and  Great  Men)  We  entered 
the  Town  with  English  Colours  before  Us,  and  were  kindly 
received  by  their  King,  who  invited  Us  into  his  own  House, 
&  set  our  Colours  upon  the  Top  of  it — The  Firing  of  Guns 
held  about  a  Quarter  of  an  Hour,  and  then  all  the  white  Men 
and  Traders  that  were  there,  came  and  welcomed  Us  to  the 
the  Twigtwee  Town — This  Town  is  situate  on  the  NW  Side 
of  the  Big  Miamee  River  about  150  M  from  the  Mouth  there- 
of ;  it  consists  of  about  400  Families,  &  daily  encreasing,  it  is 
accounted  one  of  the  strongest  Indian  Towns  upon  this  Part 


48  CHRISTOPHER    GISx's    JOURNALS. 

of  the  Continent — The  Twigtwees  are  a  very  numerous  Peo- 
ple consisting  of  many  different  Tribes  under  the  same  Form 
of  Government.  Each  tribe  has  a  particular  Chief  or  King, 
one  of  which  is  chosen  indifferently  out  of  any  Tribe  to  rule 
the  whole  Nation,  and  is  vested  with  greater  Authorities 
than  any  of  the  others — They  are  accounted  the  most  power- 
ful People  to  the  Westward  of  the  English  Settlements,  & 
much  superior  to  the  six  Nations  with  whom  they  are  now 
in  Amity :  their  Strength  and  Numbers  are  not  thoroughly 
known,  as  they  have  but  lately  traded  with  the  English,  and 
indeed  have  very  little  Trade  among  them  :  they  deal  in  much 
the  same  Comodities  with  the  Northern  Indians.  There  are 
other  Nations  or  Tribes  still  further  to  the  Westward  daily 
coming  in  to  them,  &  'tis  thought  their  Power  and  Interest 
reaches  to  the  Westward  of  the  Mississippi,  if  not  across  the 
Continent ;  they  are  at  present  very  well  affected  to  the  Eng- 
lish, and  seem  fond  of  an  Alliance  with  them — they  formerly 
lived  on  the  farther  Side  of  the  Obache,  and  were  in  the 
French  Interest,  who  supplied  them  with  some  few  Trifles 
at  a  most  exorbitant  Price — they  were  called  by  the  French 
Miamees ;  but  they  have  now  revolted  from  them,  and  left 
their  former  Habitations  for  the  Sake  of  trading  with  the 
English ;  and  notwithstanding  all  the  Artifices  the  French 
have  used,  they  have  not  been  able  to  recall  them. 

After  We  had  been  some  Time  in  the  King's  House  M' 
Montour  told  Him  that  We  wanted  to  speak  with  Him  and 
the  Chiefs  of  this  Nation  this  Evening  upon  which  We  were 
invited  into  the  long  House,  and  having  taken  our  Places 
M'  Montour  began  as  follows — "  Brothers  the  Twigtwees  as 
"  We  have  been  hindered  by  the  high  Waters  and  some  other 
"  Business  with  our  Indian  Brothers,  no  Doubt  our  long  Stay 
"has  caused  some  Trouble  among  our  Brethren  here,  There- 
"  fore  We  now  present  you  with  two  Strings  of  Wampum  to 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO    COMPANY.  49 

"  remove  all  the  Trouble  of  your  Hearts,  &  clear  your  Eyes, 
"that  You  may  see  the  Sun  shine  clear,  for  We  have  a  great 
"  Deal  to  say  to  You,  &  We  woud  have  You  send  for  one  of 
"  Your  Friends  that  can  speak  the  Mohickon  or  the  Mingoe 
"  Tongues  well,  that  We  may  understand  each  other  thoroughly, 
"for  We  have  a  great  Deal  of  Business  to  do" — The  Mo- 
hickons  are  a  small  Tribe  who  most  of  them  speak  English, 
and  are  also  well  acquainted  with  the  Language  of  the  Twig- 
twees,  and  they  with  theirs —  M'  Montour  then  proceeded  to 
deliver  Them  a  Message  from  the  Wyendotts  and  Delawares 
as  follows  "  Brothers  the  Twigtwees,  this  comes  by  our  Bro- 
"  thers  the  English  who  are  coming  with  good  News  to  You  : 
"  We  hope  You  will  take  Care  of  Them,  and  all  our  Brothers 
"  the  English  who  are  trading  among  You  :  You  made  a  Road 
"for  our  Brothers  the  English  to  come  and  trade  among  You, 
"  but  it  is  now  very  foul,  great  Loggs  are  fallen  across  it,  and 
"We  would  have  You  be  strong  like  Men,  and  have  one 
"  Heart  with  Us,  and  make  the  Road  clear,  that  our  Brothers 
"  the  English  may  have  free  Course  and  Recourse  between 
*'  You  and  Us — In  the  Sincerity  of  our  Hearts  We  send  You 
"these  four  Strings  of  Wampum,  to  which  they  gave  the 
usual  Yo  Ho — Then  they  said  they  wanted  some  Tobacco  to 
smoak  with  Us,  and  that  tomorrow  they  woud  send  for  their 
Interpreter. 

Monday  Fely  i8. — We  walked  about  viewed  the  Fort  which 
wanted  some  Repairs,  &  the  Trader's  Men  helped  Them  to 
bring  Loggs  to  line  the  Inside. 

Tuesday  19. — We  gave  their  Kings  and  great  Men  some 
Clothes,  and  Paint  Shirts,  and  now  they  were  busy  dressing 
and  preparing  themselves  for  the  Council — The  Weather 
grew  warm  and  the  Creeks  began  to  lower  very  fast. 

Wednesday  20. — About  12  of  the  Clock  We  were  informed 
that  some  of  the  foreign  Tribes  were  coming,  upon  which 


50  CHRISTOPHER    GIST  S    JOURNALS. 

proper  Persons  were  ordered  to  meet  them  and  conduct  Them 
into  the  Town,  and  then  We  were  invited  into  the  long  House ; 
after  We  had  been  seated  about  a  Quarter  of  an  Hour  four 
Indians,  two  from  each  Tribe  (who  had  been  sent  before 
to  bring  the  long  Pipe,  and  to  inform  that  the  rest  were  com- 
ing) came  in,  &  informed  Us  that  their  Friends  had  sent 
these  Pipes  that  We  might  smoak  the  Calamut  Pipe  of  Peace 
with  Them  and  that  they  intended  to  do  the  same  with  Us. 

Thursday  Feb''  21. — We  were  again  invited  into  the  long 
House  where  M'  Croghan  made  them(with  the  foreign  Tribes) 
a  Present  to  the  Value  of  ;^ioo  Pensylvania  Money,  and 
delivered  all  our  Speeches  to  Them,  at  which  they  seemed 
well  pleased,  and  said,  that  they  would  take  Time  and  con- 
sider well  what  We  had  said  to  Them. 

Friday  22. — Nothing  remarkable  happened  in  the  Town. 

Saturday  23.— In  the  Afternoon  there  was  an  Alarm  in  the 
Town  which  caused  a  great  Confusion  and  running  about 
among  the  Indians,  upon  enquiring  into  the  Reason  of  this 
Stir,  they  told  Us  that  it  was  occasioned  by  six  Indians  that 
came  to  war  against  Them,  from  the  Southward  :  three  of 
them  Cutaways,  and  three  Shanaws  (these  were  some  of  the 
Shanaws  who  had  formerly  deserted  from  the  other  Part  of 
the  Nation,  and  now  live  to  the  Southward)  Towards  Night 
there  was  a  report  spread  in  Town  that  four  Indians,  and  four 
hundred  French,  were  on  their  March  and  just  by  the  Town  : 
But  soon  after  the  Messenger  who  brought  this  News  said, 
there  were  only  four  french  Indians  coming  to  Council,  and 
that  they  bid  him  say  so,  only  to  see  how  the  English  woud 
behave  themselves  ;  but  as  they  had  behaved  themselves  like 
Men,  He  now  told  the  Truth. 

Sunday  24. — This  Morning  the  four  French  Indians  came 
into  Town  and  were  kindly  received  by  the  Town  Indians ; 
they   marched    in   under   French    Colours,  and   were   con- 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO   COMPANY.  $1 

ducted  into  the  long  House,  and  after  they  had  been  in  about 
a  Quarter  of  an  Hour,  the  Council  sate,  and  We  were  sent  for 
that  We  might  hear  what  the  French  had  to  say  to  them — 
The  Pyankeshee  King  (who  was  at  that  Time  the  principal 
Man,  and  Comander  in  Chief  of  the  Twigtwees)  said.  He 
woud  have  the  English  Colours  set  up  in  this  Council  as  well 
as  the  French,  to  which  We  answered  he  might  do  as  he 
thought  fit.  After  We  were  seated  right  opposite  to  the 
French  Embassadors,  One  of  Them  said,  He  had  a  Present  to 
make  Them,  so  a  Place  was  prepared  (as  they  had  before  done 
for  our  Present)  between  Them  and  Us,  and  then  their 
Speaker  stood  up,  and  layed  His  hands  upon  two  small  Caggs 
of  Brandy  that  held  about  seven  Quarts  each,  and  a  Roll  of 
Tobacco  of  about  ten  Pounds  Weight,  then  taking  two  strings 
of  Wampum  in  his  Hand,  He  said,  "What  he  had  to  deliver 
Them  was  "from  their  Father  (meaning  the  French  King) 
"and  he  desired  they  woud  hear  what  he  was  about  to  say  to 
"Them;"  then  he  layed  them  two  Strings  of  Wampum  down 
upon  the  Caggs,  and  taking  up  four  other  Strings  of  black 
and  white  Wampum,  he  said,  "that  their  Father  remembring 
"his  Children,  had  sent  them  two  Caggs  of  Milk,  and  some 
"  Tobacco,  and  that  he  now  had  made  a  clear  Road  for  them, 
"to  come  and  see  Him  and  his  Officers;  and  pressed  them 
"  very  much  to  come ;  then  he  took  another  String  of  Wampum 
in  his  Hand,  and  said,  "their  Father  now  woud  forget  all  lit- 
"  tie  Differences  that  had  been  between  Them,  and  desired 
"Them  not  to  be  of  two  Minds,  but  to  let  Him  know  their 
"Minds  freely,  for  He  woud  send  for  Them  no  more" — To 
which  the  Pyankeshee  King  replyed,  "it  was  true  their 
"  Father  had  sent  for  them  several  Times,  and  said  the  Road 
"was  clear,  but  He  understood  it  was  made  foul  &  bloody, 
"  and  by  Them— We  (said  He)  have  cleared  a  Road  for  our 
"  Brothers  the  English,  and  your  Fathers  have  made  it  bad, 


52  CHRISTOPHER    GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

"  and  have  taken  some  of  our  Brothers  Prisoners,  Which  We 
"look  upon  as  clone  to  Us,  and  he  turned  short  about  and 
"  went  out  of  Council " — After  the  French  Embassador  had 
delivered  his  Message  He  went  into  one  of  the  private  Houses 
and  endeavoured  much  to  prevail  on  some  Indians,  and  was 
seen  to  cry  and  lament  (as  he  said  for  the  Loss  of  that 
Nation. 

Monday  Feb''  25. — This  Day  We  receieved  a  Speech  from 
the  Wawaughtanneys  and  Pyankeshees  (two  Tribes  of  the 
Twigtwees)  One  of  the  Chiefs  of  the  former  spoke  "  Broth- 
"  ers.  We  have  heard  what  You  have  said  to  Us  by  the  Inter- 
"  prefer  and  We  see  You  take  Pity  upon  our  poor  Wives  and 
"Children,  and  have  taken  Us  by  the  Hand  into  the  great 
"  Chain  of  Friendship  ;  therefore  We  present  You  with  these 
"  two  Bundles  of  Skins  to  make  Shoes  for  your  People,  and 
"this  Pipe  to  smoak  in,  to  assure  You  that  our  Hearts  are 
"good  and  true  towards  You  our  Brothers  ;  and  We  hope  that 
"  We  shall  all  continue  in  true  Love  and  Friendship  with  one 
"another,  as  People  with  one  Head  and  one  Heart  ought  to 
"  do ;  You  have  pityed  Us  as  You  always  did  the  rest  of  our 
"Indian  Brothers,  We  hope  that  Pity  You  have  always  shewn, 
"will  remain  as  long  as  the  Sun  gives  Light,  and  on  our  Side 
"  you  may  depend  upon  sincere  and  true  Friendship  towards 
"  You  as  long  as  We  have  Strength  " — This  Person  stood  up 
and  spoke  with  the  Air  and  Gesture  of  an  Orator. 

Tuesday  26. — The  Twigtwees  delivered  the  following 
Answer  to  the  four  Indians  sent  by  the  French — The  Cap- 
tain of  the  Warriors  stood  up  and  taking  some  Strings  of 
black  and  white  Wampum  in  j;his  Hand  he  spoke  with  a 
fierce  Tone  and  very  warlike  Air — "  Brothers  the  Ottaways, 
"  You  are  always  differing  with  the  French  Yourselves,  and 
"  yet  You  listen  to  what  they  say,  but  We  will  let  You  know  by 
"  these  four  Strings  of  Wampum,  that  We  will  not  hear  any 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO   COMPANY.  53 

"  Thing  they  say  to  Us,  nor  do  any  Thing  they  bid  Us ' ' — 
Then  the  same  Speaker  with  six  Strouds  two  Match-Coats, 
and  a  String  of  black  Wampum  (I  understood  the  Goods 
were  in  Return  for  the  Milk  and  Tobacco)  and  directing  his 
Speech  to  the  French  said,  "Fathers,  you  desire  that  We 
"  may  speak  our  Minds  from  our  Hearts,  which  I  am  going  to 
"  do ;  You  have  often  desired  We  shoud  go  Home  to  You, 
"  but  I  tell  You  it  is  not  our  Home,  for  We  have  made  a  Road 
"  as  far  as  the  Sea  to  the  Sun-rising,  and  have  been  taken  by 
"  the  Hand  by  our  Brothers  the  English,  and  the  six  Nations, 
"  and  the  Delawares  Shannoahs  and  Wyendotts,  and  We  as- 
"  sure  You  it  is  the  Road  We  will  go  ;  and  as  You  threaten 
"  Us  with  War  in  the  Spring,  We  tell  You  if  You  are  angry 
"  We  are  ready  to  receive  You,  and  resolve  to  die  here  before 
"  We  will  go  to  You  ;  And  that  You  may  know  that  this  our 
"  Mind,  We  send  You  this  String  of  black  Wampum."  After 
a  short  Pause  the  same  Speaker  spoke  again  thus — "  Brothers 
"  the  Ottaways,  You  hear  what  I  say,  tell  that  to  your  Fath- 
"  ers  the  French,  for  that  is  our  Mind,  and  We  speak  it  from 
"  our  Hearts. 

Wednesday  27. — This  Day  they  took  down  their  French 
Colours,  and  dismissed  the  four  French  Indians,  so  they  took 
their  Leave  of  the  Town  and  set  off  for  the  French  Fort. 

Thursday  28. — The  Crier  of  the  Town  came  by  the  King's 
Order  and  invited  Us  to  the  long  House  to  see  the  Warriors 
Feather  Dance ;  it  was  performed  by  three  Dancing-Masters, 
who  we're  painted  all  over  with  various  Colours,  with  long 
Sticks  in  their  Hands,  upon  the  Ends  of  which  were  fastened 
long  Feathers  of  Swans,  and  other  Birds,  neatly  woven  in  the 
Shape  of  a  Fowls  Wing:  in  this  Disguise  they  performed 
many  antick  Tricks,  waving  their  Sticks  and  Feathers  about 
with  great  Skill  to  imitate  the  flying  and  fluttering  of  Birds, 
keeping  exact  Time  with  their  Musick ;  while  they  are  danc- 


54  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

ing  some  of  the  Warriors  strikes  a  Post,  upon  which  the 
Musick  and  Dancers  cease,  and  the  Warrior  gives  an  Account 
of  his  Atchievements  in  War,  and  when  he  has  done,  throws 
down  some  Goods  as  a  Recompence  to  the  Performers  and 
Musicians  ;  after  which  they  proceed  in  their  Dance  as  before 
till  another  Warrior  strikes  y"  Post,  and  so  on  as  long  as  the 
Company  think  fit 

Friday  March  i. — We  received  the  following  Speech  from 
the  Twigtwees  the  Speaker  stood  up  and  addressing  himself 
as  to  the  Governor  of  Pensylvania  with  two  Strings  of 
Wampum  in  his  Hand,  He  said — "  Brothers  our  Hearts  are 
"glad  that  You  have  taken  Notice  of  Us,  and  surely  Brothers 
"We  hope  that  You  will  order  a  Smith  to  settle  here  to 
"  mend  our  Guns  and  Hatchets,  Your  Kindness  makes  Us 
"  so  bold  to  ask  this  Request.  You  told  Us  our  Friendship 
"  should  last  as  long,  and  be  as  the  greatest  Mountain,  We 
"  have  considered  well,  and  all  our  great  Kings  &  Warriors 
"are  come  to  a  Resolution  never  to  give  Heed  to  what  the 
"  French  say  to  Us,  but  always  to  hear  &  believe  what  You 
"  our  Brothers  say  to  Us — Brothers  We  are  obliged  to  You 
"for  your  kind  Invitation  to  receive  a  Present  at  the  Loggs 
"  Town,  but  as  our  foreign  Tribes  are  not  yet  come,  We  must 
"  wait  for  them,  but  You  may  depend  We  will  come  as  soon 
"as  our  Women  have  planted  Corn  to  hear  what  our  Brothers 
"will  say  to  Us — Brothers  We  present  You  with  this  Bundle 
"  of  Skins,  as  We  are  but  poor  to  be  for  Shoes  for  You  on 
"  the  Road,  and  We  return  You  our  hearty  Thanks  for  the 
"  Clothes  which  You  have  put  upon  our  Wives  and  Children  " 
— We  then  took  our  Leave  of  the  Kings  and  Chiefs,  and  they 
ordered  that  a  small  Party  of  Indians  shoud  go  with  Us  as 
far  as  Hockhockin  ;  but  as  I  had  left  my  Boy  and  Horses  at 
the  lower  Shannoah  Town,  I  was  obliged  to  go  by  myself  or 
to  go  sixty  or  seventy  Miles  out  of  my  Way,  which  I  did  not 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO    COMPANY.  55 

care  to  do  ;  so  we  all  came  over  the  Miamee  River  together 
this  Evening,  but  M'  Croghan  &  M'  Montour  went  over  again 
&  lodged  in  the  Town,  but  I  stayed  on  this  Side  at  one  Robert 
Smith's  (a  Trader)  where  We  had  left  our  Horses — Before  the 
French  Indians  had  come  into  Town,  We  had  drawn  Articles 
of  Peace  and  Alliance  between  the  English  and  the  Wa- 
waughtanneys  and  Pyankeshees  ;  the  Indentures  were  signed 
sealed  and  delivered  on  both  Sides,  and  as  I  drew  them  I 
took  a  Copy — The  Land  upon  the  great  Miamee  River  is 
very  rich  level  and  well  timbered,  some  of  the  finest  Meadows 
that  can  be  :  The  Indians  and  Traders  assure  Me  that  the 
Land  holds  as  good  and  if  possible  better,  to  the  Westward 
as  far  as  the  Obache  which  is  accounted  lOO  Miles,  and  quite 
up  to  the  Head  of  the  Miamee  River,  which  is  60  Miles 
above  the  Twigtwee  Town,  and  down  the  said  River  quite  to 
the  Ohio  which  is  reckoned  150  Miles — The  Grass  here 
grows  to  a  great  Height  in  the  clear  Fields,  of  which  there 
are  a  great  Number,  &  the  Bottoms  are  full  of  white  Clover, 
wild  Rye,  and  blue  Grass. 

Saturday  March  2. — George  Croghan  and  the  rest  of  our 
Company  came  over  the  River,  We  got  our  Horses,  &  set 
out  about  35  M.  to  Mad  Creek  (this  is  a  Place  where  some 
English  Traders  had  been  taken  Prisoners  by  the  French.) 

Sunday  3. — This  Morning  We  parted.  They  for  Hock- 
hockin,  and  I  for  the  Shannoah  Town,  and  as  I  was  quite  alone 
and  knew  that  the  French  Indians  had  threatened  Us,  and 
woud  probably  pursue  or  lye  in  Wait  for  Us,  I  left  the  Path, 
and  went  to  the  South  Westward  down  the  little  Miamee 
River  or  Creek,  where  I  had  fine  traveling  thro  rich  Land 
and  beautiful  Meadows,  in  which  I  coud  sometimes  see  forty 
or  fifty  Buffaloes  feeding  at  once— The  little  Miamee  River 
or  Creek  continued  to  run  thro  the  Middle  of  a  fine  Meadow, 
about  a  Mile  wide  very  clear  like  an  old  Field,  and  not  a  Bush 


56  CHRISTOPHER   GISX's   JOURNALS. 

in  it,  I  coud  see  the  Buffaloes  in  it  above  two  Miles  off :  I 
travelled  this  Day  about  30  M. 

Monday  4. — This  Day  I  heard  several  Guns,  but  was  afraid 
to  examine  who  fired  Them,  lest  they  might  be  some  of  the 
French  Indians,  so  I  travelled  thro  the  Woods  about  30  M ; 
just  at  Night  I  killed  a  fine  barren  Cow-Buffaloe  and  took  out 
her  Tongue,  and  a  little  of  the  best  of  her  Meat :  The  Land 
still  level  rich  and  well  timbered  with  Oak,  Walnut,  Ash, 
Locust,  and  Sugar  Trees. 

Tuesday  5. — I  travelled  about  30  M. 

Wednesday  6. — I  travelled  about  30  M,  and  killed  a  fa",  B    r. 

Thursday  7. — Set  out  with  my  Horse  Load  of  Bear  and 
travelled  about  30  M  this  Afternoon  I  met  a  young  ]\Ian  (1 
Trader)  and  We  encamped  together  that  Night ;  He  happened 
to  have  some  Bread  with  Him,  and  I  had  plenty  of  Meat,  so 
We  fared  very  well. 

Friday  8. — Travelled  about  30  M,  and  arrived  at  Night  at 
the  Shannoah  Town — All  the  Indians,  as  well  as  the  white 
Men  came  out  to  welcome  my  Return  to  their  Town,  being 
very  glad  that  all  Things  were  rightly  settled  in  the  Miamee 
Country,  they  fired  upwards  of  150  Guns  in  the  Town,  and 
made  an  Entertainment  in  Honour  of  the  late  Peace  with  the 
western  Indians — In  my  Return  from  the  Twigtwee  to  the 
Shannoah  Town,  I  did  not  keep  an  exact  Account  of  Course 
or  Distance ;  for  as  the  Land  thereabouts  was  every  where 
much  the  same,  and  the  Situation  of  the  Country  was  suf- 
ficiently described  in  my  Journey  to  the  Twigtwee  Town,  I 
thought  it  unnecessary,  but  have  notwithstanding  laid  down 
my  Tract  pretty  nearly  in  my  Plat. 

Saturday  March  9. — In  the  Shannoah  Town,  I  met  with 
one  of  the  Mingoe  Chiefs,  who  had  been  down  at  the  Falls  of 
Ohio,  so  that  We  did  not  see  Him  as  We  went  up ;  I  in- 
formed Him  of  the  King's  Present,  and  the  Invitation  down 


COMMITTEE   OF  THE   OHIO   COMPANY.  $7 

to  Virginia — He  told  that  there  was  a  Party  of  French  In- 
dians hunting  at  the  Falls,  and  if  I  went  there  they  would 
certainly  kill  Me  or  carry  Me  away  Prisoner  to  the  French  ; 
For  it  is  certain  they  would  not  let  Me  pass  :  However  as  I 
had  a  great  Inclination  to  see  the  Falls,  and  the  Land  on  the 
E  Side  the  Ohio,  I  resolved  to  venture  as  far  as  possible. 

Sunday  10  &  Monday  ii. — Stayed  in  the  Town,  and  pre- 
pared for  my  Departure. 

Tuesday  12. —  I  got  my  Horses  over  the  River  and  after 
Breakfast  my  Boy  and  I  got  ferryed  over — The  Ohio  is  near 
%  of  a  Mile  wide  at  Shannoah  Town,  &  is  very  deep  and 
smooth. 

Wednesday  13. — We  set  out  S  45  W,  down  the  said  River 
on  the  SE  Side  8  M,  then  S  10  M,  here  I  met  two  Men  be- 
longing to  Robert  Smith  at  whose  House  I  lodged  on  this 
Side  the  Miamee  River,  and  one  Hugh  Crawford,  the  said 
Robert  Smith  had  given  Me  an  Order  upon  these  Men,  for 
two  of  the  Teeth  of  a  large  Beast,  which  they  were  bringing 
from  towards  the  Falls  of  Ohio,  one  of  which  I  brought  in 
and  delivered  to  the  Ohio  Company — Robert  Smith  informed 
Me  that  about  seven  Years  ago  these  Teeth  and  Bones  of 
three  large  Beasts  (one  of  which  was  somewhat  smaller  than 
the  other  two)  were  found  in  a  salt  Lick  or  Spring  upon  a 
small  Creek  which  runs  into  the  S  Side  of  the  Ohio,  about 
15  M,  below  the  Mouth  of  the  great  Miamee  River,  and  20 
above  the  Falls  of  Ohio — He  assured  Me  that  the  Rib  Bones 
of  the  largest  of  these  Beasts  were  eleven  Feet  long,  and  the 
Skull  Bone  six  feet  wide,  across  the  Forehead,  &  the  other 
Bones  in  Proportion;  and  that  there  were  several  Teeth 
there,  some  of  which  he  called  Horns,  and  said  they  were  up- 
wards  of  five  Feet  long,  and  as  much  as  a  Man  coud  well 
carry :  that  he  had  hid  one  in  a  Branch  at  some  Distance 
from  the  Place,  lest  the  French  Indians  shoud  carry  it  away 
5 


58  CHRISTOPHER  GIST'S   JOURNALS. 

— The  Tooth  which  I  brought  in  for  the  Ohio  Company,  was 
a  Jaw  Tooth  of  better  than  four  Pounds  Weight ;  it  appeared 
to  be  the  furthest  Tooth  in  the  Jaw,  and  looked  like  fine  Ivory 
when  the  outside  was  scraped  off — I  also  met  with  four  Shan- 
noah  Indians  coming  up  the  River  in  their  Canoes,  who  in- 
formed me  that  there  were  about  sixty  French  Indians  en- 
camped at  the  Falls. 

Thursday  14. — I  went  down  the  River  S  15  M,  the  Land 
upon  this  Side  the  Ohio  chiefly  broken,  and  the  Bottoms  but 
narrow. 

Friday  15.— S  5  M,  SW  10  M,  to  a  Creek  that  was  so  high, 
that  We  coud  not  get  over  that  Night. 

Saturday  16.— S  45  W  about  35  M. 

Sunday  17. — The  same  Course  15  M,  then  N  45  W  5  M. 

Monday  18.—  N  45  W  5  M  then  SW  20  M,  to  the  lower  Salt 
Lick  Creek,  which  Robert  Smith  and  the  Indians  told  Us  was 
about  15  M  above  the  Falls  of  Ohio  ;  the  Land  still  hilly,  the 
Salt  Lick  here  much  the  same  with  those  before  described — 
this  Day  W6  heard  several  Guns  which  made  me  imagine  the 
French  Indians  were  not  moved,  but  were  still  hunting,  and 
firing  thereabouts :  We  also  saw  some  Traps  newly  set,  and 
the  Footsteps  of  some  Indians  plain  on  the  Ground  as  if  they 
had  been  there  the  Day  before — I  was  now  much  troubled 
that  I  could  not  comply  with  my  Instructions,  &  was  once  re- 
solved to  leaye  the  Boy  and  Horses,  and  to  go  privately  on  Foot 
to  view  the  Falls ;  but  the  Boy  being  a  poor  Hunter,  was 
afraid  he  woud  starve  if  I  was  long  from  him,  and  there  was 
also  great  Danger  lest  the  French  Indians  shoud  come  upon 
our  Horses  Tracts,  or  hear  their  Bells,  and  as  I  had  seen  good 
Land  enough,  I  thought  perhaps  I  might  be  blamed  for  ven- 
turing so  far,  in  such  dangerous  Times,  so  I  concluded  not  to 
go  to  the  Falls ;  but  travell'd  away  to  the  Southward  till  We  were 
over  the  little  Cuttaway  River — The  Falls  of  Ohio  by  the  best 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO    COMPANY.  59 

Information  I  coud  get  are  not  very  steep,  on  the  SE  Side 
there  is  a  Bar  of  Land  at  some  Distance  from  the  Shore,  the 
Water  between  the  Bar  and  the  Shore  is  not  above  3  feet 
deep,  and  the  Stream  moderately  strong,  the  Indians  fre- 
quently pass  safely  in  their  Canoes  thro  this  Passage,  but  are 
obliged  to  take  great  Care  as  they  go  down  lest  the  Current 
which  is  much  the  strongest  on  the  NW  Side  shoud  draw 
them  that  Way  ;  which  woud  be  very  dangerous  as  the  Water 
on  that  Side  runs  with  great  Rapidity  over  several  Ledges  of 
Rocks  ;  the  Water  below  the  Falls  they  say  is  about  six  Fath- 
oms deep,  and  the  River  continues  without  any  Obstructions 
till  it  empties  itself  into  the  Missisippi  which  is  accounted 
upwards  of  400  M — The  Ohio  near  the  Mouth  is  said  to  be 
very  wide,  and  the  Land  upon  both  Sides  very  rich,  and  in 
general  very  level,  all  the  Way  from  the  Falls— After  I  had 
determined  not  to  go  to  the  Falls,  We  turned  from  Salt  Lick 
Creek,  to  a  Ridge  of  Mountains  that  made  towards  the  Cutta- 
way  River,  &  from  the  Top  of  the  Mountain  We  saw  a  fine 
level  Country  SW  as  Far  as  our  Eyes  coud  behold,  and  it  was 
a  very  clear  Day  ;  We  then  went  down  the  Mountain  and  set 
out  S  20  W  about  5  M,  thro  rich  level  Land  covered  with 
small  Walnut  Sugar  Trees,  Red-Buds,  &c. 

Tuesday  March  19. — We  set  out  S  and  crossed  several 
Creeks  all  running  to  the  SW,  at  about  12  M,  came  to  the 
little  Cuttaway  River  :  We  were  obliged  to  go  up  it  about  i 
M  to  an  Island,  which  was  the  shoalest  Place  We  coud  find 
to  cross  at,  We  then  continued  our  Course  in  all  about  30  M 
thro  level  rich  Land  except  about  2  M  which  was  broken  and 
indifferent — This  Level  is  about  35  M  broad,  and  as  We  came 
up  the  Side  of  it  along  the  Branches  of  the  little  Cuttaway 
We  found  it  about  150  M  long;  and  how  far  toward  the  SW 
We  coud  not  tell,  but  imagined  it  held  as  far  as  the  great 
Cuttaway  River,  which  woud  be  upwards  of  100  M  more,  and 


60  CHRISTOPHER   GIST'S  JOURNALS. 

appeared  much  broader  that  Way  than  here,  as  I  coud  dis- 
cern from  the  Tops  of  the  Mountains 

Wednesday  20. — We  did  not  travel,  I  went  up  to  the  Top 
of  a  Mountain  to  view  the  Country,  to  the  SE  it  looked  very 
broken,  and  mountainous  but  to  the  Eastward  and  SW  it 
appeared  very  level. 

Thursday  21.— Set  out  S  45  E  15  M,  S  5  M,  here  I  found  a 
Place  where  the  Stones  shined  like  high-coloured  Brass,  the 
Heat  of  the  Sun  drew  out  of  them  a  Kind  of  Borax  or  Salt 
Petre  only  something  sweeter ;  some  of  which  I  brought  in  to 
the  Ohio  Company,  tho  I  believe  it  was  Nothing  but  a  Sort 
of  Sulphur. 

Friday  22. — SE  12  M,  I  killed  a  fat  Bear,  and  was  taken 
sick  that  Night. 

Saturday  23. — I  stayed  here,  and  sweated  after  the  Indian 
Fashion,  which  helped  Me. 

Sunday  24.— Set  out  E  2  M,  NE  3  M,  N  i  M,  E  2  M,SE  5 
M,  E  2  M,  N  2  M,  SE  7  M  to  a  small  Creek,  where  We 
encamped  in  a  Place  where  We  had  but  poor  Food  for  our 
Horses,  &  both  We  and  They  were  very  much  wearied  :  the 
Reason  of  our  making  so  many  short  Courses  was.  We  were 
driven  by  a  Branch  of  the  little  Cuttaway  River  (whose  Banks 
were  so  exceeding  steep  that  it  was  impossible  to  ford  it)  into 
a  Ledge  of  rocky  Laurel  Mountains  which  were  almost  impass- 
able. 

Monday  25.— Set  out  SE  12  M,  N  2  M,  E  I  M,  S  4  M,SE  2 
M,  We  killed  a  Buck  Elk  here  and  took  out  his  Tongue  to 
carry  with  Us. 

Tuesday  26.— Set  out  SE  10  M,  SW  i  M,  SE  i  M,  SW  i 
M  SE  I  M,  SW  I  M,  SE  I  M  SW  I  M  SE  5  M  killed  2 
Buffaloes  &  took  out  their  Tongues  and  encamped — These 
two  Days  We  travelled  thro  Rocks  and  Mountains  full  of 
Laurel  Thickets  which  We  coud  hardly  creep  thro  without 
cutting  our  Way. 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE  OHIO    COMPANY.  6l 

Wednesday  27. — Our  Horses  and  Selves  were  so  tired  that 
We  were  obliged  to  stay  this  Day  to  rest,  for  We  were  unable 
to  travel— On  all  the  Branches  of  the  little  Cuttaway  River 
was  great  Plenty  of  fine  Coal  some  of  which  I  brought  in  to 
the  Ohio  Company. 

Thursday  28. — Set  out  SE  15  M  crossing  several  Creeks  of 
the  little  Cuttaway  River,  the  Land  still  full  of  Coal  and 
black  Slate. 

Friday  29.— The  same  Course  SE  about  12  M  the  Land 
still  mountainous. 

Saturday  30. — Stayed  to  rest  our  Horses,  I  went  on  Foot, 
and  found  a  Passage  thro  the  Mountains  to  another  Creek,  or 
a  Fork  of  the  same  Creek  that  We  were  upon. 

Sunday  31. — The  same  Course  SE  15  M,  killed  a  Buffaloe 
&  encamped. 

Monday  April  i. — Set  out  the  same  Course  about  20  M. 
Part  of  the  Way  We  went  along  a  Path  up  the  Side  of  a  little 
Creek,  at  the  Head  of  which  was  a  Gap  in  the  Mountains, 
then  our  Path  went  down  another  Creek  to  a  Lick  where 
Blocks  of  Coal  about  8  to  10  In  :  square  lay  upon  the  Surface 
of  the  Ground,  here  We  killed  a  Bear  and  encamped. 

Tuesday  2.— Set  out  S  2  M,  SE  i  M,  NE  3  M,  killed  a  Buf- 
faloe. 

Wednesday  3.— S  i  M,  SW  3  M,  E  3  M,  SE  2  M,  to  a  small 
Creek  on  which  was  a  large  Warriors  Camp,  that  woud  contain 
70  or  80  Warriors,  their  Captain's  Name  or  Title  was  the  Crane, 
as  I  knew  by  his  Picture  or  Arms  painted  on  a  Tree. 

Thursday  4. — We  stayed  here  all  Day  to  rest  our  Horses, 
and  I  platted  down  our  Courses  and  I  found  I  had  still  near 
200  M  Home  upon  a  streight  Line. 

Friday  April  5. — Rained,  and  We  stayed  at  the  Warrior's 
Camp. 

Saturday  6. — We  went  along  the  Warrior's  Road  S  i  M,  SE 
3  M,  S  2  M,  SE  3  M,  E  3  M,  killed  a  Bear. 


62  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

Sunday  7.— Set  out  E  2  M,  NE  i  M,  SE  i  M,  S  i  M,  W  i 
M,  SW  I  M,  S  I  M,  SE  2  M,  S  i  M. 

Monday  8.— S  i  M,  SE  i  M,  E  3  M,  SE  i  M,  E  3  M,  NE  2 
M,  N  I  M,  E  I  M,  N  I  M,  E  2  M  and  encamped  upon  a  small 
Laurel  Creek. 

Tuesday  9  &  Wednesday  10. — The  Weather  being  some- 
what bad  We  did  not  travel  these  two  Days,  the  Country  be- 
ing still  rocky  mountainous,  &  full  of  Laurel  Thickets,  the 
worst  traveling  I  ever  saw. 

Thursday  11. — We  travelled  several  Courses  near  20  M, 
but  in  the  Afternoon  as  I  coud  see  from  the  Top  of  the  Moun- 
tain the  Place  We  came  from,  I  found  We  had  not  come  upon 
a  streight  Line  more  than  N  65  E  10  M. 

Friday  12. — Set  out  thro  very  difficult  Ways  E  5  M,  to  a 
small  Creek. 

Saturday  13. — The  same  Course  E  upon  a  streight  Line, 
tho  the  Way  We  were  obliged  to  travel  was  near  20  M,  here 
We  killed  two  Bears,  the  Way  still  rocky  and  mountainous. 

Sunday  14. — As  Food  was  very  scarce  in  these  barren 
Mountains,  We  were  obliged  to  move  for  fresh  Feeding  for 
our  Horses,  so  We  went  on  E  5  M,  then  N  20  W  6  M,  to  a 
Creek  where  We  got  something  better  Feeding  for  our  Horses, 
in  climbing  up  the  Clifts  and  Rocks  this  Day  two  of  our 
Horses  fell  down,  and  were  pretty  much  hurt,  and  a  Paroquete, 
which  I  had  got  from  the  Indians,  on  the  other  Side  the 
Ohio  (where  there  are  a  great  many)  died  of  a  Bruise  he  got 
by  a  Fall ;  tho  it  was  but  a  Trifle  I  was  much  concerned  at 
losing  Him,  as  he  was  perfectly  tame,  and  had  been  very  brisk 
all  the  Way,  and  I  had  still  Corn  enough  left  to  feed  Him — 
In  the  Afternoon  I  left  the  Horses,  and  went  a  little  Way 
down  the  Creek,  and  found  such  a  Precipice  and  such  Laurel 
Thickets  as  We  coud  not  pass,  and  the  Horses  were  not  able 
to  go  up  the  Mountain  till  they  had  rested  a  Day  or  two. 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO    COMPANY,  63 

Monday  1 5. — We  cut  a  Passage  through  the  Laurels  better 
than  2  M,  as  I  was  climbing  up  the  Rocks,  I  got  a  Fall  which 
hurted  Me  pretty  much — This  Afternoon  as  We  wanted  Provi- 
sion I  killed  a  Bear. 

Tuesday  16. — Thunder  and  Rain  in  the  Morning — We  set 
out  N  25  E  3  M. 

Wednesday  17. — This  Day  I  went  to  the  Top  of  a  Moun- 
tain to  view  the  Way,  and  found  it  so  bad  that  I  did  not  care 
to  engage  it,  but  rather  chose  to  go  out  of  the  Way  and  keep 
down  along  the  Side  of  a  Creek  till  I  coud  find  a  Branch  or 
Run  on  the  other  Side  to  go  up. 

Thursday  18. — Set  out  down  the  said  Creek  Side  N  3  M, 
then  the  Creek  turning  NW  I  was  obliged  to  leave  it,  and  go 
up  a  Ridge  NE  i  M,  E  2  M,  SE  2  M,  NE  i  M,  to  the  Fork 
of  a  River. 

Friday  19.— Set  out  down  the  said  Run  NE  2  M,  E  2  M, 
SE  2  M,  N  20  E  2  M,  E  2  M,  up  a  large  Run. 

Saturday  20. — Set  out  SE  10  M,  E  4  M,  over  a  small  Creek 
— We  had  such  bad  traveling  down  this  Creek,  that  We  had 
like  to  have  lost  one  of  our  Horses. 

Sunday  21. — Stayed  to  rest  our  Horses. 

Monday  22. — Rained  all  Day — We  coud  not  travel. 

Tuesday  23.— Set  out  E  8  M  along  a  Ridge  of  Mountains 
then  SE  5  M,  E  3  M,  SE  4  M,  and  encamped  among  very 
steep  Mountains. 

Wednesday  24.— SE  4  M  thro  steep  Mountains  and 
Thickets  E  6  M. 

Thursday  25.— E  5  M,  SE  I  M,  NE  2  M,  SE  2  M,  E  i  M, 
then  S  2  M,  E  I  M  killed  a  Bear. 

Friday  26.— Set  out  SE  2  M,  here  it  rained  so  hard  We 
were  obliged  to  stop. 

Saturday  27  Sunday  28  &  Monday  29.— These  three  Days 
it  continued  raining  &  bad  Weather,  so  that  We  coud  not  tra- 


64  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

vel — All  the  Way  from  Salt  Lick  Creek  to  this  Place,  the 
Branches  of  the  little  Cuttaway  River  were  so  high  that  We 
coud  not  pass  Them,  which  obliged  Us  to  go  over  the  Heads 
of  them,  thro  a  continued  Ledge  of  almost  inaccessible 
Mountains,  Rocks  and  Laurel  Thickets. 

Tuesday  30.— Fair  Weather  set  out  E  3  M,  SE  8  M,  E  2 
M,  to  a  little  River  or  Creek  which  falls  into  the  big  Conha- 
way,  called  blue  Stone,  where  we  encamped  and  had  good 
Feeding  for  our  Horses. 

Wednesday  May  i. — Set  out  N  75  E  10  M  and  killed  a  Buf- 
faloe,  then  went  up  a  very  high  Mountain,  upon  the  Top  of 
which  was  a  Rock  60  or  70  Feet  high,  &  a  Cavity  in  the 
Middle,  into  which  I  went,  and  found  there  was  a  Passage 
thro  it  which  gradually  ascended  to  the  Top,  with  several 
Holes  in  the  Rock,  which  let  in  the  Light,  when  I  got  to  the 
Top  of  this  Rock,  I  could  see  a  prodigious  Distance,  and 
coud  plainly  discover  where  the  big  Conhaway  River  broke 
the  next  high  Mountain,  I  then  came  down  and  continued  my 
Course  N  75  E  5  M  farther  and  encamped. 

Thursday  2  &  Friday  3. — These  two  Days  it  rained  and  We 
stayed  at  our  Camp  to  take  Care  of  some  Provision  We  had 
killed. 

Saturday  4. — This  Day  our  Horses  run  away,  and  it  was 
late  before  We  got  Them,  so  We  coud  not  travel  far.  We 
went  N  75  E  4  M. 

Sunday  May  5. — Rained  all  Day. 

Monday  6. — Set  out  thro  very  bad  Ways  E  3  M,  NE  6  M, 
over  a  bad  Laurel  Creek  E  4  M. 

Tuesday  7. — Set  out  E  10  M,to  the  big  Conhaway  or  new 
River  and  got  over  half  of  it  to  a  large  Island  where  We 
lodged  that  Night. 

Wednesday  8. — We  made  a  Raft  of  Logs  and  crossed  the 
other  half  of  the  River  &  went  up  it  S  about  2  M — The  Con- 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO    COMPANY.  6$ 

haway  or  new  River  (by  some  called  Wood's  River)  where  I 
crossed  it  (which  was  about  8  M  above  the  Mouth  of  blue 
Stone  River)  is  better  than  200  Yards  wide,  and  pretty  deep, 
but  full  of  Rocks  and  Falls — The  Bottoms  upon  it  and  blue 
Stone  River  are  very  rich  but  narrow,  the  high  Land  broken. 

Thursday  9. — Set  out  E  13  M  to  a  large  Indian  Warrior's 
Camp,  where  We  killed  a  Bear  and  stayed  all  Night. 

Friday  10.— Set  out  E  4  M,  SE  3  M,  S  3  M,  thro  Mountains 
cover'd  with  Ivy  and  Laurel  Thickets. 

Saturday  11. — Set  out  S  2  M,  SE  5  M,  to  a  Creek  and  a 
Meadow  where  We  let  our  Horses  feed,  then  SE  2  M,  S  i  M, 
SE  2  M  to  a  very  high  Mountain  up  on  the  Top  of  which  was 
a  Lake  or  Pond  about  %  oi  a.  Mile  long  NE  &  SW,  &  ^  of 
a  Mile  wide  the  Water  fresh  and  clear,  and  a  clean  gravelly 
Shore  about  10  Yards  wide  with  a  fine  Meadow  and  six  fine 
Springs  in  it,  then  S  about  4  M,  to  a  Branch  of  the  Conhaway 
called  Sinking  Creek. 

Sunday  12. — Stayed  to  rest  our  Worses  and  dry  some  Meat 
We  had  killed. 

Monday  13.— Set  out  SE  2  M,  E  i  M,  SE  3  M,  S  12  M  to 
one  Rich''  Hall^  in  Augusta  County  this  Man  is  one  of  the 
farthest  Settlers  to  the  Westward  upon  the  New  River. 

Tuesday  14. — Stayed  at  Rich"  Hall's  and  wrote  to  the  Presi- 
dent of  Virginia  &  the  Ohio  Company  to  let  them  know  I 
shoud  be  with  Them  by  the  15'"  of  June. 

Wednesday  15.— Set  out  from  Rich"  Hall's  S  16  M. 

Thursday  16. — The  same  Course  S  22  M  and  encamped  at 
Beaver  Island  Creek  (a  Branch  of  the  Conhaway)  opposite  to 
the  Head  of  Roanoke. 

Friday  17.— Set  out  SW  3  M,  then  S  9  M,  to  the  dividing 
Line  between  Carolina  and  Virginia,  where  I  stayed  all  Night, 
the  Land  from  Rich   Hall's  to  this  Place  is  broken. 

Saturday  18. — Set  out  S  20  ,M  to  my  own  House  on  the 


66  CHRTSTOPHER   GIST's  JOURNALS. 

Yadkin  River,  when  I  came  there  I  found  all  my  Family 
gone,  for  the  Indians  had  killed  five  People  in  the  Winter 
near  that  Place,  which  frightened  my  Wife  and  Family  away 
to  Roanoke  about  35  M  nearer  in  among  the  Inhabitants, 
which  I  was  informed  of  by  an  old  Man  I  met  near  the  Place. 
Sunday  19. — Set  out  for  Roanoke,  and  as  We  had  now  a 
Path,  We  got  there  the  same  Night  where  I  found  all  my 
Family  well. 

Christopher  Gist. 


i 


INSTRUCTIONS  GIVEN  TO  M'  CHRISTOPHER  GIST  BY 

THE  COMMITTEE  OF  THE  OHIO  COMPANY 

JULY  16""  1751. 


After  You  have  returned  from  Williamsburg  and  have  exe- 
cuted the  Commission  of  the  President  &  Council,  if  they  shall 
think  proper  to  give  You  One,  otherwise  as  soon  as  You  can 
conveniently  You  are  to  apply  to  Col°  Cresap  for  such  of  the 
Company's  Horses,  as  You  shall  want  for  the  Use  of  yourself 
and  such  other  Person  or  Persons  You  shall  think  necessary 
to  carry  with  You ;  and  You  are  to  look  out  &  observe  the 
nearest  &  most  convenient  Road  You  can  find  from  the  Com- 
pany's Store  at  Wills's  Creek  to  a  Landing  at  Mohongeyela  ; 
from  thence  You  are  to  proceed  down  the  Ohio  on  the  South 
Side  thereof,  as  low  as  the  Big  Conhaway,  and  up  the  same 
as  far  as  You  judge  proper,  and  find  good  Land — You  are  all 
the  Way  to  keep  an  exact  Diary  &  Journal  &  therein  note 
every  Parcel  of  good  Land,  with  the  Quantity  as  near  as  You 
can  by  any  Means  compute  the  same,  with  the  Breadth, 
Depth,  Course  and  Length  of  the  several  Branches  falling 
into  the  Ohio,  &  the  different  Branches  any  of  Them  are 
forked  into,  laying  the  same  as  exactly  down  in  a  Plan  thereof 
as  You  can ;  observing  also  the  Produce,  the  several  Kinds 
of  Timber  and  Trees,  observing  where  there  is  Plenty  and 
where  the  Timber  is  scarce  ;  and  You  are  not  to  omit  proper 
Observations  on  the  mountainous,  barren,  or  broken  Land, 
that  We  may  on  your  Return  judge  what  Quantity  of  good 
Land  is  contained  within  the  Compass  of  your  Journey,  for 
We  woud  not  have  You  omit  taking  Notice  of  any  Quantity 

(67) 


68  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

of  good  Land,  tho  not  exceeding  4  or  500  Acres  provided 
the  same  lies  upon  the  River  Ohio  &  may  be  convenient  for 
our  building  Store  Houses  &  other  Houses  for  the  better 
carrying  on  a  Trade  and  Correspondence  down  that  River. 

175 1. — Pursuant  to  my  Instructions  hereunto  annexed  from 
the  Committee  of  the  Ohio  Company  bearing  Date  16*  July 
1751 

Monday  Nov'  4. — Set  out  from  the  Company's  Store  House 
in  Frederick  County  Virginia  opposite  the  Mouth  of  Wills's 
Creek  and  crossing  Potomack  River  went  W  4  M  to  a  Gap  in 
the  Allegany  Mountains  upon  the  S  W  Fork  of  the  said 
Creek — This  Gap  is  the  nearest  to  Potomack  River  of  any  in 
the  Allegany  Mountains,  and  is  accounted  one  of  the  best, 
tho  the  Mountain  is  very  high,  The  Ascent  is  no  where  very 
steep  but  rises  gradually  near  6  M,  it  is  now  very  full  of  old 
Trees  &  Stones,  but  with  some  Pains  might  be  made  a  good 
Waggon  Road  ;  this  Gap  is  directly  in  the  Way  to  Mohongaly, 
&  several  Miles  nearer  than  that  the  Traders  commonly  pass 
thro,  and  a  much  better  Way. 

Tuesday  5. — Set  out  N  80  W  8  M,  it  rained  and  obliged  Us 
to  stop. 

Wednesday  6. — The  same  Course  3  M  hard  Rain. 

Thursday  7. — Rained  hard  and  We  coud  not  travel. 

Friday  8. — Set  out  the  same  Courses  N  80  W  3  M,  here 
We  encamped,  and  turned  to  see  where  the  Branches  lead  to 
&  found  they  descended  into  the  middle  Fork  of  Yaughaugh- 
gaine — We  hunted  all  the  Ground  for  10  M,  or  more  and 
killed  several  Deer,  &  Bears,  and  one  large  Elk — The  Bottoms 
upon  the  Branches  are  but  narrow  with  some  Indian  Fields 
about  2000  Acres  of  good  high  Land  about  a  Mile  from  the 
largest  Branch. 

From  Saturday  9  to  Tuesday  19. — We  were  employed  in 
searching  the  Lands  and  discovering  the  Branches  Creeks 
&c. 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO    COMPANY.  69 

Wednesday  20. — Set  out  N  45  W  5  M  killed  a  Deer. 

Thursday  21. — The  same  Course  5  M  the  greatest  Part  of 
this  Day  We  were  cutting  our  Way  thro'  a  Laurel  Thicket 
and  lodged  by  the  Side  of  one  at  Night. 

Friday  22. — Set  out  the  same  Course  N  45  W  2  M  and  cut 
our  Way  thro  a  great  Laurel  Thicket  to  the  middle  Fork  of 
Yaughyaughgaine  then  S  down  the  said  Fork  (crossing  a 
Run)  I  M,  then  S  45  W  2  M  over  the  said  Fork  where  We 
encamped. 

Saturday  23. — Rested  our  Horses  and  examined  the  Land 
on  Foot,  which  We  found  to  be  tolerable  rich  &  well  timbered 
but  stony  and  broken. 

Sunday  24. — Set  out  W  2  M  then  S  45  W  6  M  over  the  S 
Fork  and  encamp'd  on  the  SW  Side  about  i  M  from  a  small 
Hunting  Town  of  the  Delawares  from  whom  I  bought  some 
Com — I  invited  these  Indians  to  the  Treaty  at  the  Loggs 
Town,  the  full  Moon  in  May,  as  Col°  Patton  had  desired  Me ; 
they  treated  Me  very  civilly,  but  after  I  went  from  that  Place 
my  Man  informed  Me  that  they  threatened  to  take  away  our 
Guns  and  not  let  Us  travel. 

Monday  25. — Set  out  W  6  M,  then  S  45  W  2  M  to  a  Laurel 
Creek,  where  We  encamped  &  killed  some  Deer. 

From  Tuesday  26  to  Thursday  28. — We  were  examining 
the  Lands  which  We  found  to  be  rocky  and  mountainous. 

Friday  29.— Set  out  W  3  M  then  N  65  W  3  M,  N  45 
W  2  M. 

From  Saturday  30  to  Friday  Dec'  6. — We  searched  the  Land 
several  Miles  round  and  found  it  about  15  M  from  the  Foot 
of  the  Mountains  to  the  River  Mohongaly  the  first  5  M  of 
which  E  &  W  is  good  level  farming  Land,  with  fine  Meadows, 
the  Timber  white  Oak  and  Hiccory — the  same  Body  of  Land 
holds  10  M,  S,  to  the  upper  Forks  of  Mohongaly,  and  about 
10  M,  N,  towards  the  Mouth  of  Yaughyaughgaine— The  Land 


70  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

nearer  the  River  for  about  8  or  9  M  wide,  and  the  same 
Length  is  much  richer  &  better  timbered,  with  Walnut, 
Locust,  Poplars  and  Sugar-Trees,  but  is  in  some  Places  very 
hilly,  the  Bottoms  upon  the  River  i  M,  and  in  some  Places 
near  2  M  wide. 

Saturday  7. — Set  out  W  6  M  and  went  to  an  Indian  Camp 
and  invited  them  to  the  Treaty  at  the  Loggs  Town  at  the  full 
Moon  in  May  next ;  at  this  Camp  there  was  a  Trader  named 
Charles  Poke  who  spoke  the  Indian  Tongue  well,  the  Indian 
to  whom  this  Camp  belonged  after  much  Discourse  with  Me, 
complained  &  said  "  my  Friend  You  was  sent  tp  Us  last  Year 
"  from  the  Great  Men  in  Virginia  to  inform  Us  of  a  Present 
"  from  the  Great  King  over  the  Water,  and  if  You  can  bring 
"  News  from  the  King  to  Us,  why  cant  You  tell  Him  some- 
"  thing  from  Me  ?  The  Proprietor  of  Pensylvania  granted 
"  my  Father  a  Tract  of  Land  begining  eight  Miles  below 
"  the  Forks  of  Brandy  Wine  Creek  and  binding  on  the  said 
"  Creek  to  the  Fork  and  including  the  West  Fork  &  all  its 
"  Waters  on  both  Sides  to  the  Head  Fountain — The  White 
"  People  now  live  on  these  Lands,  and  will  neither  let  Me 
"  have  Them,  nor  pay  Me  any  Thing  for  Them — My  Father's 
"  Name  was  Chickoconnecon,  I  am  his  eldest  Son,  and  my 
"  Name  is  Nemicotton— I  desire  that  You  will  let  the  Gov- 
"  ernor  and  Great  Men  in  Virginia  know  this — It  may  be 
"  they  will  tell  the  great  King  of  it,  and  he  will  make  M'  Pen 
"  or  his  People  give  Me  the  Land  or  pay  Me  for  it — This 
"  Trader  here  Charles  Poke  knows  the  Truth  of  what  I  say, 
"  that  the  Land  was  granted  to  my  Father,  &  that  He  or  I 
"  never  sold  it,  to  which  Charles  Poke  answered  that  Chicko- 
"  connecon  had  such  a  grant  of  Land,  &  that  the  People  who 
"  lived  on  it  coud  get  no  Titles  to  it,  for  that  it  was  now 
"  called  Manner  Lands — This  I  was  obliged  to  insert  in  my 
"  Journal  to  please  the  Indian. 


COMMITTEE  OF  THE  OHIO  COMPANY.  71 

Sunday  Dec'  8. — Stayed  at  the  Indian  Camp. 

Monday  9.— Set  out  S  45  W  i  M,  W  6  M  to  the  River 
Mohongaly — at  this  Place  is  a  large  Cavity  in  a  Rock  about 
30  Feet  long  &  20  Feet  wide  &  about  7  Feet  high  and  an 
even  Floor — The  Entrance  into  it  is  so  large  and  open  that  it 
lets  in  Plenty  of  Light,  and  close  by  it  is  a  Stream  of  fine 
Water. 

From  Tuesday  lo  to  Friday  13. — We  were  examining  the 
Lands  which  for  9  or  10  M,  E  is  rich  but  hilly  as  before 
described,  on  the  E  Side  the  River  for  several  Miles  there 
are  fine  Bottoms  a  Mile  wide  and  the  Hills  above  them  are 
extraordinary  rich  and  well  timbered. 

Saturday  14. — We  had  Snow. 

Sunday  15. — Crossed  the  River  Mohongaly  which  in  this 
Place  is  53  Poles  wide,  the  Bottoms  upon  the  W  Side  are  not 
above  100  Yards  broad,  but  the  Hills  are  very  rich  both  up  and 
down  the  River,  and  full  of  Sugar  Trees. 

Monday  16. — Spent  in  searching  the  Land. 

Tuesday  17. — Set  out  W  5  M  the  Land  upon  this  Course 
hilly  but  very  rich  for  about  a  Mile  and  a  half,  then  it  was 
level  with  good  Meadows  but  not  very  rich  for  about  a  Mile 
&  a  half  more,  &  the  last  2  M  next  to  Licking  Creek  was 
very  good  Land ;  upon  this  Creek  We  lodged  at  a  hunting 
Camp  of  an  Indian  Captain  named  Oppaymolleah,  here 
I  saw  an  Indian  named  Joshua  who  spoke  very  good  English ; 
he  had  been  acquainted  with  Me  several  Years,  and  seemed 
very  glad  to  see  Me,  and  wondered  much  where  I  was  going 
so  far  in  those  Woods ;  I  said  I  was  going  to  invite  all  the 
great  Men  of  the  Indians  to  a  Treaty  to  be  held  at  Loggs  Town, 
the  full  Moon  in  May  next,  where  a  Parcel  of  Goods,  a  Present 
from  the  King  of  Great  Britain,  would  be  delivered  Them  by 
proper  Commissioners,  and  that  these  were  the  Goods  which 
I  informed  them  of  last  Year,  by  Order  of  the  President  of 


72  CHRISTOPHER    GIST  S  JOURNALS. 

Virginia,  Col°  Lee,  who  was  since  dead,  Joshua  informed 
Them  what  I  said,  and  they  told  Me,  I  ought  to  let  the  Beaver 
know  this,  so  I  wrote  a  Line  to  him  by  Joshua,  who  promised 
to  deliver  it  safe,  and  said  there  was  a  Trader's  Man  who 
coud  read  it  for  him — This  Beaver  is  the  Sachemore  or  Chief 
of  the  Delawares.  It  is  customary  among  the  Indian  Chiefs 
to  take  upon  Them  the  Name  of  any  Beast  or  Bird  they 
ancy,  the  Picture  of  which  they  always  sign  instead  of  their 
Name  or  Arms. 

Wednesday  i8. — Stayed  at  the  Camp. 

Thursday  19,— Set  out  W  3  M,  S  45  W  2  M,  W  i  M  to  a 
Branch  of  Licking  Creek. 

Friday  20. — Set  out  W  i  M,  S  45  W  6  M  and  encamped. 

From  Saturday  21  to  Tuesday,  Jan'^  7. — We  stayed  at  this 
Place,  We  had  a  good  Deal  of  Snow  &  bad  Weather — My 
Son  had  the  Misfortune  to  have  his  Feet  frost-bitten,  which 
kept  Us  much  longer  here  than  We  intended  however  We 
kill'd  Plenty  of  Deer  Turkeys  &c  and  fared  very  well — The 
Land  hereabouts  very  good  but  to  the  W  and  SW  it  is  hilly. 

1752 

Wednesday  Jan'>'  8 — My  Son's  Feet  being  somewhat 
better,  We  set  out  S  30  W  5  M,  S  45  W  3  M,  the  Land 
middling  good  but  hilly — I  found  my  Son's  Feet  too  tender 
to  travel,  and  we  were  obliged  to  stop  again. 

From  Thursday  9  to  Sunday  19. — We  stayed  at  this  Place 
— While  We  were  here  We  killed  Plenty  of  Bear  Deer  & 
Elk,  so  that  We  lived  very  well. 

Monday  20. — We  set  out  W  j  M — here  we  were  stopped 
by  Snow. 

Tuesday  21. — Stayed  all  the  Day  in  the  Camp. 

Wednesday  22. — Set  out  S  45  W  12  M,  where  we  scared 
a  Panther  from  under  a  Rock  where  there  was  Room  enough 
for  Us,  in  it  We  encamped  &  had  good  Shelter. 


I 


COMMITTEE    OF    THE    OHIO    COMPANY.  73 

From  Thursday  23  to  Sunday  26.— We  stayed  at  this  Place 
&  had  Snow  and  bad  Weather. 

Monday  27.— Set  out  S  45  W  6  M,  here  We  had  Snow  & 
encamped. 

From  Tuesday  28  to  Friday  31.— Stayed  at  this  Place,  the 
Land  upon  these  last  Courses  is  rich  but  hilly  and  in  some 
Places  Stony. 

Saturday  Feb  i.— Set  out  S  45  W  3  M,  S  45  E  i  M,  S  2  M, 
S  45  W  I  M,  crossed  a  Creek  on  which  the  Land  was  very 
hilly  and  rocky  yet  here  and  there  good  Spots  on  the  Hills. 
Sunday  2.— S  45  W  3  M,  here  We  were  stopped  by  Snow. 
From  Monday  3  till  Sunday  9.— We  stayed  at  this  Place 
and  had  a  good  Deal  of  Snow  &  bad  Weather. 

Monday  10.— Set  out  S  45  W  8  M— The  Snow  hard  upon 
the  Top  &  bad  traveling 

Tuesday  11.— The  same  Course  S  45  W  2  M,  then  W  i  M, 
S  45  W  4  M. 

Wednesday  12.— Killed  two  Buffaloes  and  searched  the 
Land  to  the  NW  which  I  found  to  be  rich  &  well  timbered 
with  lofty  Walnuts,  Ash,  Sugar  Trees  &c  but  hilly  in  most 
Places. 

Thursday  13.— Set  out  W  i  M,  S  45  W  2  M,  W  2  M,  S  45 
W  2  M,  W  2  M— In  this  Day's  Journey  We  found  a  Place 
where  a  Piece  of  Land  about  100  Yards  square  &  about  10 
Feet  deep  from  the  Surface  had  slipped  down  a  steep  Hill, 
somewhat  more  than  it's  own  Breadth,  with  most  of  the 
Trees  standing  on  it  upright  as  they  were  at  first,  and  a  good 
many  Rocks  which  appeared  to  be  in  the  same  Position  as 
they  were  before  the  Ground  slipt  :  It  had  bent  down  and 
crushed  the  Trees  as  it  came  along,  which  might  plainly  be 
seen  by  the  Ground  on  the  upper  Side  of  it,  over  which  it 
had  passed — It  seemed  to  have  been  done  but  two  or  three 
Years  ago — In  the  Place  from  whence  it  removed  was  a 
6 


74  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

large  Quarry  of  Rocks,  in  the  Sides  of  which  were  Veins  of 
several  Colours,  particularly  one  of  a  deep  yellow,  about  3 
Feet  from  the  Bottom,  in  which  were  other  small  Veins 
some  white,  some  a  greenish  Kind  of  Copperas  :  A  Sample 
of  which  I  brought  in  to  the  Ohio  Company  in  a  small 
Leather  Bag  N°  i — Not  very  far  from  this  Place  We  found 
another  large  Piece  of  Earth,  which  had  slipped  down  in  the 
same  Manner — Not  far  from  here  We  encamped  in  the  Fork 
of  a  Creek. 

Friday  14. — We  stayed  at  this  Place — On  the  NW  Side  of 
the  Creek  on  a  rising  ground  by  a  small  Spring  We  found  a 
large  Stone  about  3  Feet  Square  on  the  Top,  and  about  6  or 
7  Feet  high;  it  was  all  covered  with  green  Moss  except  on 
the  SE  Side  which  was  smooth  and  white  as  if  plaistered 
with  Lime.  On  this  Side  I  cut  with  a  cold  Chizzel  in  large 
Letters, 

THE  OHIO  COMPANY 

FEB^   175 1 

BY  CHRISTOPHER  GIST 

Saturday  15.— Set  out  S  45  W  5  M,  rich  Land  but  hilly, 
very  rich  Bottoms  up  the  Creek  but  not  above  200  Yards 
wide. 

Sunday  16.— S  45  W  5  M  thro  rich  Land,  the  Bottoms 
about  ^  of  a  Mile  wide  upon  the  Creek. 

Monday  17. — The  same  Course  S  45  W  3  M,  W  3  M,  S  45 
W  3  M,  S  20  W  3  M,  S  8  M,  S  45  W  2  M  over  a  Creek  upon 
which  was  fine  Land,  the  Bottoms  about  a  Mile  wide. 

Tuesday  Feb''  18. — S  10  M  over  the  Fork  of  a  Creek  S  45 
W  4  M  to  the  Top  of  a  high  Ridge,  from  whence  We  coud 
see  over  the  Conhaway  River — Here  We  encamped,  the  Land 
mixed  with  Pine  and  not  very  good. 

Wednesday  19.— Set  out  S  15  M,  S  45  W  6  M  to  the  Mouth 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO    COMPANY.  '  7$ 

of  a  little  Creek,  upon  which  the  Land  is  very  rich,  and  the 
Bottoms  a  Mile  wide — The  Conhaway  being  very  high  over- 
flowed some  Part  of  the  Bottoms. 

Thursday  20. — Set  out  N  45  W  2  M  across  a  Creek  over  a 
Hill,  then  S  80  W  10  M  to  a  large  Run,  all  fine  Land  upon 
this  Course — (We  were  now  about  2  M  from  the  River  Con- 
haway)—Then  continued  our  Course  S  80  W  10  M,  the  first 
5  M  good  high  Land ;  tolerably  level  the  last  5  thro  the 
River  Bottoms,  which  were  a  Mile  wide  and  very  rich,  to  a 
Creek  or  large  Run  which  We  crossed,  &  continued  our 
Course  S  80  W  2  M  farther  &  encamped. 

Friday  21. — The  same  Course  S  80  W  still  continued  8  M 
further ;  then  S  2  M  to  the  Side  of  the  River  Conhaway,  then 
down  the  said  River  N  45  W  i  M  to  a  Creek  where  We  en- 
camped— The  Bottoms  upon  the  River  here  are  a  Mile  wide, 
the  Land  very  rich — The  River  at  this  Place  is  79  Poles 
broad. 

Saturday  22.— Set  out  N  45  W  4  M,  W  7  M,  to  a  high  Hill 
from  whence  We  coud  see  the  River  Ohio,  then  N  45  W  12 
M  to  the  River  Ohio  at  the  Mouth  of  a  small  Run  where  We 
encamped.  The  Bottoms  upon  the  River  here  are  a  Mile 
wide  &  very  good,  but  the  high  Land  broken. 

Sunday  23. — Set  out  S  45  E  14  M  over  Letort's  Creek — 
The  Land  upon  this  Creek  is  poor,  broken,  &  full  of  Pines — 
Then  the  same  Course  S  45  E  10  M  and  encamped  on  the 
River  Side  upon  fine  rich  Land  the  Bottoms  about  a  Mile 
wide. 

Monday  24.— Set  out  E  12  M  up  the  River  all  fine  Land 
the  Bottoms  about  i}4  Miles  wide,  full  of  lofty  Timber :  then 
N  5  M  crossing  Smith's  Creek.  The  Land  here  is  level  & 
good,  but  the  Bottoms  upon  the  River  are  not  above  }4  a 
Mile  wide— then  N  45  E  8  M  to  a  Creek  called  Beyansoss 
where  We  encamped. 


76  CHRISTOPHER    GIST'S   JOURNALS. 

Tuesday  2$. — We  searched  the  Land  upon  this  Creek 
which  We  found  very  good  for  12  or  13  M  up  it  from  the 
River — The  Bottoms  upon  it  are  about  }4  a  Mile  wide,  &  the 
Bottoms  upon  the  River  at  the  Mouth  of  it  a  Mile  wide,  and 
very  well  timbered. 

Wednesday  26. — Set  out  N  45  E  13  M  to  the  River  Ohio  at 
the  Mouth  of  a  Creek  called  Lawwellaconin  ;  then  S  55  E  5 
M  up  the  said  Creek — The  Bottoms  upon  this  Creek  are  a 
Mile  wide  &  the  high  Land  very  good  &  not  much  broken,  & 
very  well  timbered 

Thursday  27  Friday  28  &  Saturday  29.— Rained  and  we 
coud  not  travel — Killed  four  Buffaloes. 

Sunday  March  i  and  Monday  2. — Set  out  N  30  E  10  M  to 
a  little  Branch  full  of  Coal  then  N  30  E  16  M  to  Nawmissipia  or 
Fishing  Creek — My  Son  hunted  up  this  Creek  (where  I  had 
cut  the  Letters  upon  the  Stone)  which  he  said  was  not  above 
6  M  in  a  streight  Line  from  this  Place — The  Bottoms  upon 
this  Creek  are  but  narrow,  the  high  Land  hilly,  but  very  rich 
and  well  timbered. 

Tuesday  3. — Set  out  N  30  E  18  M  to  Molchuconickon  or 
Buffaloe  Creek. 

Wednesday  4. — We  hunted  up  and  down  this  Creek  to  ex- 
amine the  Land— The  Bottoms  are  %  oi  a.  Mile  wide  &  very 
rich,  a  great  many  cleared  Fields  covered  with  white  Clover, 
the  high  Land  rich,  but  in  general,  hilly. 

Thursday  5. — Set  out  N  30  E  9  M  to  a  Creek  called  Nee- 
mokeesy  where  We  killed  a  black  Fox  &  two  Bears — Upon 
this  Creek  We  found  a  Cave  under  a  Rock  about  150  Feet 
long  &  55  feet  wide  ;  one  Side  of  it  open  facing  the  Creek, 
the  Floor  dry — We  found  it  had  been  much  used  by  Buffaloes 
&  Elks  who  came  there  to  lick  a  kind  of  saltish  Clay  which  I 
found  in  the  Cave,  and  of  which  I  took  a  sample  in  a  Leather 
Bag  N  .  2. 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO   COMPANY.  JJ 

Friday  March  6.— We  stayed  at  the  Cave— Not  very  far 
from  it  We  saw  a  Herd  of  Elks  near  30 one  of  which  my  Son 
killed. 

Saturday  7.— Set  out  N  30  E  7  M  to  the  Ohio  River— The 
Bottoms  here  were  very  rich  and  near  2  M  wide ;  but  a  little 
higher  up,  the  Hill  seemed  very  steep,  so  that  We  were 
obliged  to  leave  the  River  &  went  E  6  M  on  very  high  Land  ; 
then  N  9  M  thro'  very  good  high  Land  tolerable  level  to  a 
Creek  called  Wealin  or  Scalp  Creek  where  We  encamped. 

Sunday  8. — We  went  out  to  search  the  Land  which  We 
found  very  good  for  near  15  M  up  this  Creek  from  the  Mouth 
of  it,  the  Bottoms  above  a  Mile  wide  &  some  Meadows — We 
found  an  old  Indian  Road  up  this  Creek. 

Monday  9. — Set  out  N  45  E  18  M  to  a  Creek — The  same 
Course  3  M  to  another  Creek  where  We  encamped — These 
Creeks  the  Traders  distinguish  by  the  Name  of  the  two 
Creeks. 

Tuesday  10. — We  hunted  up  and  down  these  Creeks  to  ex- 
amine the  Land  from  the  Mouths  of  Them,  to  the  place 
where  We  had  crossed  near  the  Heads  of  Them  ;  in  our  Way 
to  the  Conhaway — They  run  near  parallel  at  about  3  or  4  M 
Distance,  for  upwards  of  30  M—  The  Land  between  Them  all 
the  Way  is  rich  &  level,  chiefly  Low  Grounds  &  finely  tim- 
bered with  Walnuts,  Locusts,  Cherry  Trees,  &  Sugar  Trees 

Wednesday  11. — Set  out  E  18  M  crossing  three  Creeks  all 
good  Land  but  hilly  then  S  16  M  to  our  old  Camp,  where  my 
Son  had  been  frost-bitten.  After  We  had  got  to  this  Place  in 
our  old  Tract,  I  did  not  keep  any  exact  Account  of  Course 
and  Distance,  as  I  thought  the  Rivers  &  Creeks  sufficiently 
described  by  my  Courses  as  I  came  down. 

Thursday  12. — I  set  out  for  Mohongaly  crossed  it  u|)on  a 
Raft  of  Logs  from  whence  I  made  the  best  of  my  Way  to  Po- 
tomack — I  did  not  keep  exactly  my  old  Tract  but  went  more 


78  CHRISTOPHER    GIST'S    JOURNALS. 

to  the  Eastward  &  found  a  much  nearer  Way  Home  :  and  am 
of  Opinion  the  Company  may  have  a  tolerable  good  Road  from 
Wills  Creek  to  the  upper  Fork  of  Monhongaly,  from  whence 
the  River  is  navigable  all  the  Way  to  the  Ohio  for  large  flat 
bottomed  Boats — The  Road  will  be  a  little  to  the  Southward 
of  West,  and  the  Distance  to  the  Fork  of  Mohongaly  about 
70  M — While  I  was  at  Mohongaly  in  my  Return  Home  an 
Indian,  who  spoke  good  English,  rame  to  Me  &  said — That 
their  great  Men  the  Beaver  and  Captain  Oppamylucah  (these 
are  two  Chiefs  of  the  Delawares)  desired  to  know  where  the 
Indian's  Land  lay,  for  that  the  French  claimed  all  the  Land 
on  one  side  the  River  Ohio  &  the  English  on  the  other  Side; 
and  that  Oppamylucah  asked  Me  the  same  Question  when  I 
was  at  his  Camp  in  my  Way  down,  to  which  I  had  made  him  no 
Answer — I  very  well  remembered  that  Oppamylucah  had 
asked  me  such  a  Question,  and  that  I  was  at  a  Loss  to  answer 
Him  as  I  now  also  was  :  But  after  some  Consideration  "  my 
Friend  "  said  I,  "  We  are  all  one  King's  People  and  the  different 
"  Colour  of  our  Skins  makes  no  Difference  in  the  King's 
"  Subjects ;  You  are  his  People  as  well  as  We,  if  you  will 
"  take  Land  &  pay  the  King's  Rights  You  will  have  the  same 
"  Privileges  as  the  White  People  have,  and  to  hunt  You  have 
"  Liberty  every  where  so  that  You  dont  kill  the  White  Peoples 
"  Cattle  &  Hogs — To  this  the  Indian  said,  that  I  must  stay  at 
that  Place  two  Days  and  then  he  woud  come  &  see  Me  again. 
He  then  went  away,  and  at  the  two  Days  End  returned  as  he 
promised,  and  looking  very  pleasant  said  He  woud  stay  with 
Me  all  Night,  after  He  had  been  with  Me  some  Time  He 
said  that  the  great  Men  bid  Him  tell  Me  I  was  very  safe  that 
I  might  come  and  live  upon  that  River  where  I  pleased— that 
I  had  answered  Them  very  true  for  We  were  all  one  King's 
People  sure  enough  &  for  his  Part  he  woud  come  to  see  Me 
at  Wills's  Creek  in  a  Month. 


COMMITTEE    OF   THE    OHIO    COMPANY.  70 

March  —  From  Thursday  12  to  Saturday  28. — We  were 
traveling  from  Mohongaly  to  Potomack  for  as  We  had  a  good 
many  Skins  to  carry  &  the  Weather  was  bad  We  traveled  but 
slow 

Sunday  29. — We  arrived  at  the  Company's  Factory  at 
Wills's  Creek. 

Christopher  Gist. 


This  Day  came  before  Me  Christopher  Gist  &  made  Oath  on 
the  holy  Evangelists  that  the  two  Journals  hereunto  annexed, 
both  which  are  signed  by  the  said  Christopher  Gist ;  the  first 
containing  an  Account  of  his  Travels  and  Discoveries  down 
the  River  Ohio  &  the  Branches  thereof,  for  the  Ohio  Company 
in  the  Years  1750  &  1751  together  with  his  Transactions 
with  the  Indians  and  his  Return  Home.  And  the  other  con- 
taining an  Account  of  his  Travels  and  Discoveries  down  the 
said  River  Ohio  on  the  SE  Side  as  low  as  the  Big  Conhaway 
made  for  the  s'  Ohio  Company  in  the  Years  175 1  &  1752  & 
his  return  to  Wills's  Creek  on  Potomack  River  (as  in  a  Piatt 
made  thereof  by  the  said  Christopher  Gist  and  given  in  to  the 
said  Ohio  Company  may  more  fully  appear)  are  just  &  true 
except  as  to  the  Number  of  Miles,  which  the  said  Christopher 
Gist  did  not  actually  measure  and  therefore  cannot  be  certain 
of  Them,  but  computed  Them  in  the  most  exact  Manner  he 
coud  &  according  to  the  best  of  his  Knowledge.  Given 
under  my  Hand  this  Day  of  175 


80  CHRISTOPHER   GIST'S   JOURNALS. 

1753- 

Wednesday  14  November,  1753. — Then  Major  George 
Washington  came  to  my  house  at  Will's  Creek,  and  delivered 
me  a  letter  from  the  council  in  Virginia,  requesting  me  to 
attend  him  up  to  the  commandant  of  the  French  fort  on  the 
Ohio  River. 

Thursday  15. — We  set  out,  and  at  night  encamped  at 
George's  Creek,  about  eight  miles,  where  a  messenger  came 
with  letters  from  my  son,  who  was  just  returned  from  his  peo- 
ple at  the  Cherokees,  and  lay  sick  at  the  mouth  of  Conego- 
cheague.  But  as  I  found  myself  entered  again  on  public  busi- 
ness, and  Major  Washington  and  all  the  company  unwilling  I 
should  return  I  wrote  and  sent  medicines  to  my  son,  and  so 
continued  my  journey,  and  encamped  at  a  big  hill  in  the  forks 
of  Youghiogany,  about  eighteen  miles. 

Friday  16. — The  next  day  set  out  and  got  to  the  big  fork  of 
said  river,  about  ten  miles  there. 

Saturday  17. — We  encamped  and  rested  our  horses,  and 
then  we  set  out  early  in  the  morning. 

Sunday  18. — And  at  night  got  to  my  house  in  the  new  set- 
tlement, about  twenty-one  miles  ;  snow  about  ancle  deep. 

Monday  19. — Set  out,  cross  Big  Youghiogany,  to  Jacob's 
cabins,  about  twenty  miles.  Here  some  of  our  horses  strag- 
gled away,  and  we  did  not  get  away  until  eleven  o'clock. 

Tuesday  20. — Set  out,  had  rain  in  the  afternoon  ;  I  killed  a 
deer ;  travelled  about  seven  miles. 

Wednesday  21. — It  continued  to  rain.     Stayed  all  day. 

Thursday  22. — We  set  out  and  came  to  the  mouth  of  Tur- 
tle Creek,  about  twelve  miles,  to  John  Frazier's  ;  and  he  was 
very  kind  to  us,  and  lent  us  a  canoe  to  carry  our  baggage  to 
the  forks,  about  ten  miles. 

Friday  23. — Set  out,  rid  to  Shannopin's  town,  and  down 


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COMMITTEE   OP   THE   OHIO    COMPANY.  8l 

Allegheny  to  the  mouth  of  Monongahela,  where  we  met  our 
baggage,  and  swimmed  our  horses  over  Allegheny,  and  there 
encamped  that  night. 

Saturday  24. — Set  out ;  we  went  to  king  Shingiss,  and  he 
and  Lawmolach  went  with  us  to  the  Logstown,  and  we  spoke 
to  the  chiefs  this  evening,  and  repaired  to  our  camp. 

Sunday  25. — They  sent  out  for  their  people  to  come  in. 
The  Half-King  came  in  this  afternoon. 

Monday  26. — We  delivered  our  message  to  the  Half-King 
and  they  promised  by  him  that  we  should  set  out  three  nights 
after. 

Tuesday  27. — Stayed  in  our  camp.  Monacatoocha  and 
Pollatha  Wappia  gave  us  some  provisions.  We  stayed  until 
the  29th  when  the  Indians  said,  they  were  not  ready.  They 
desired  us  to  stay  until  the  next  day  and  as  the  warriors 
were  not  come,  the  Half-King  said  he  would  go  with  us 
himself,  and  take  care  of  us. 

Friday  30. — We  set  out,  and  the  Half-King  and  two  old 
men  and  one  young  warrior,  with  us.  At  night  we  encamped 
at  the  Murthering  town,  about  fifteen  miles,  on  a  branch  of 
Great  Beaver  Creek.     Got  some  corn  and  dried  meat. 

Saturday  i  December. — Set  out,  and  at  night  encamped  at 
the  crossing  of  Beaver  creek  from  the  Kaskuskies  to 
Venango  about  thirty  miles.  The  next  day  rain  ;  our  Indians 
went  out  a  hunting ;  they  killed  two  bucks.  Had  rain  all 
day. 

Monday  3. — We  set  out  and  travelled  all  day.  Encamped 
at  night  on  one  of  the  head  branches  of  Great  Beaver  creek 
about  twenty-two  miles. 

Tuesday  5. — Set  out  about  fifteen  miles,  to  the  town  of 
Venango,  where  we  were  kindly  and  complaisantly  received 
by  Monsieur  Joncaire,  the  French  interpreter  for  the  Six 
Nations. 


82  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

Wednesday  5. — Rain  all  day.  Our  Indians  were  in  council 
with  the  Delawares,  who  lived  under  the  French  colors,  and 
ordered  them  to  deliver  up  to  the  French  the  belt,  with  the 
marks  of  the  four  towns,  according  to  desire  of  King  Shingiss. 
But  the  chief  of  these  Delawares  said,  "  It  was  true  King 
Shingiss  was  a  great  man,  but  he  had  sent  no  speech,  and," 
said  he, "  I  cannot  pretend  to  make  a  speech  for  a  King." 
So  our  Indians  could  not  prevail  with  them  to  deliver  their 
belt ;  but  the  Half-King  did  deliver  his  belt,  as  he  had  deter- 
mined. Joncaire  did  every  thing  he  could  to  prevail  on  our 
Indians  to  stay  behind  us,  and  I  took  all  care  to  have  them 
along  with  us. 

Thursday  6. — We  set  out  late  in  the  day  accompanied  by 
the  French  General  and  four  servants  or  soldiers,  and 

Friday  7. — All  encamped  at  Sugar  creek,  five  miles  from 
Venango.  The  creek  being  very  high  we  were  obliged  to 
carry  all  our  baggage  over  on  trees,  and  swim  our  horses 
The  Major  and  I  went  first  over,  with  our  boots  on. 

Saturday  9. — We  set  out  and  travelled  twenty-five  miles 
to  Cussewago,  an  old  Indian  town. 

Sunday  9. — We  set  out,  left  one  of  our  horses  here  that 
could  travel  no  further.  This  day  we  travelled  to  the  big 
crossing,  about  fifteen  miles,  and  encamped,  our  Indians  went 
out  to  look  out  logs  to  make  a  raft ;  but  as  the  water  was  high, 
and  there  were  other  creeks  to  cross,  we  concluded  to  keep  up 
this  side  the  creek. 

Monday  10. — Set  out,  travelled  about  eight  miles,  and 
encamped.  Our  Indians  killed  a  bear.  Here  we  had  a  creek 
to  cross,  very  deep  ;  we  got  over  on  a  tree,  and  got  our  goods 
over. 

Tuesday  1 1. — We  set  out,  travelled  about  fifteen  miles  to 
the  French  fort,  the  sun  being  set.  Our  interpreter  gave  the 
commandant  notice  of  our  being  over  the  creek ;  upon  which 


COMMITTEE   OF   THE   OHIO    COMPANY.  83 

he  sent  several  officers  to  conduct  us  to  the  fort,  and  they 
received  us  with  a  great  deal  of  complaisance. 

Wednesday  12. — The  Major  gave  the  passport,  showed  his 
commission,  and  offered  the  Governor's  letter  to  the  com- 
mandant ;  but  he  desired  not  to  receive  them,  until  the  other 
commander  from  Lake  Erie  came,  whom  he  had  sent  for,  and 
expected  next  day  by  twelve  o'clock. 

Thursday  13. — The  other  General  came.  The  Major  deliv- 
ered the  letter,  and  desired  a  speedy  answer ;  the  time  of 
year  and  business  required  it.  They  took  our  Indians  into 
private  council,  and  gave  them  several  presents. 

Friday  14. — When  we  had  done  our  business,  they  delayed 
and  kept  our  Indians,  until  Sunday ;  and  then  we  set  out 
with  two  canoes,  one  for  our  Indians,  and  the  other  for  our- 
selves. Our  horses  we  had  sent  away  some  days  before,  to 
wait  at  Venango,  if  ice  appeared  on  the  rivers  and  creeks. 

Sunday  16. — We  set  out  by  water  about  sixteen  miles,  and 
encamped.  Our  Indians  went  before  us,  passed  the  little 
lake,  and  we  did  not  come  up  with  them  that  night. 

Monday  17. — We  set  out,  came  to  our  Indians'  camp. 
They  were  out  hunting ;  they  killed  three  bears.  We  stayed 
this  day,  and 

Tuesday  18. — One  of  our  Indians  did  not  come  to  camp. 
So  we  finding  the  waters  lower  very  fast,  were  obliged  to  go 
and  leave  our  Indians. 

Wednesday  19. — We  set  out  about  seven  or  eight  miles, 
and  encamped,  and  the  next  day 

Thursday  20. — About  twenty  miles,  where  we  were  stop- 
ped by  ice,  and  worked  until  night. 

Friday  21. — The  ice  was  so  hard  we  could  not  break  our 
way  through,  but  were  obliged  to  haul  our  vessels  across  a 
point  of  land  and  put  them  in  the  creek  again.  The  Indians 
and  three  French  canoes  overtook  us  here,  and  the  people  of 


84  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

one  French  canoe  that  was  lost,  with  her  cargo  of  powder 
and  lead.  This  night  we  encamped  about  twenty  miles  above 
Venango. 

Saturday  22. — Set  out.  The  creek  began  to  be  very  low 
and  we  were  forced  to  get  out,  to  keep  our  canoe  from  over- 
setting, several  times ;  the  water  freezing  to  our  clothes  ^ 
and  we  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  the  French  overset,  and  the 
brandy  and  wine  floating  in  the  creek,  and  run  by  them,  and 
left  them  to  shift  for  themselves.  Came  to  Venango,  and 
met  with  our  people  and  horses. 

Sunday  23. — We  set  out  from  Venango,  travelled  about 
five  miles  to  Lacomick  creek. 

Monday  24. — Here  Major  Washington  set  out  on  foot  in 
Indian  dress.  Our  horses  grew  weak,  that  we  were  mostly 
obliged  to  travel  on  foot,  and  had  snow  all  day.  Encamped 
near  the  barrens. 

Tuesday  25. — Set  out  and  travelled  on  foot  to  branches  of 
Great  Beaver  creek. 

Wednesday  26.— The  Major  desired  me  to  set  out  on  foot, 
and  leave  our  company,  as  the  creeks  were  frozen,  and  our 
horses  could  make  but  little  way.  Indeed,  I  was  unwilling 
he  should  undertake  such  a  travel,  who  had  never  been  used 
to  walking  before  this  time.  But  as  he  insisted  on  it,  I  set  out 
with  our  packs,  like  Indians,  and  travelled  eighteen  miles. 
That  night  we  lodged  at  an  Indian  cabin,  and  the  Major  was 
much  fatigued.  It  was  very  cold ;  all  the  small  runs  were 
frozen,  that  we  could  hardly  get  water  to  drink. 

Thursday  27. — We  rose  early  in  the  morning,  and  set  out 
about  two  o'clock.  Got  to  the  Murthering  town,  on  the 
southeast  fork  of  Beaver  creek.  Here  we  met  with  an  Indian, 
whom  I  thought  I  had  seen  at  Joncaire's,  at  Venango,  when 
on  our  journey  up  to  the  French  fort.  This  fellow  called  me 
by  my  Indian  name,  and  pretended  to  be  glad  to  see  me.    He 


COMMITTEE   OF    THE    OHIO    COMPANY.  8$ 

asked  us  several  questions,  as  how  we  came  to  travel  on  foot, 
when  we  left  Venango,  where  we  parted  with  our  horses,  and 
when  they  would  be  there,  etc.  Major  Washington  insisted 
on  travelling  on  the  nearest  way  to  forks  of  Alleghany.  We 
asked  the  Indian  if  he  could  go  with  us,  and  show  us  the 
nearest  way.  The  Indian  seemed  very  glad  and  ready  to  go 
with  us.  Upon  which  we  set  out,  and  the  Indian  took  the 
Major's  pack.  We  travelled  very  brisk  for  eight  or  ten  miles, 
when  the  Major's  feet  grew  very  sore,  and  he  very  weary,  and 
the  Indian  steered  too  much  north-eastwardly.  The  Major 
desired  to  encamp,  to  which  the  Indian  asked  to  carry  his 
gun.  But  he  refused  that,  and  then  the  Indian  grew  churlish, 
and  pressed  us  to  keep  on,  telling  us  that  there  were  Ottawa 
Indians  in  these  woods,  and  they  would  scalp  us  if  we  lay  out ; 
but  to  go  to  his  cabin,  and  we  should  be  safe.  I  thought 
very  ill  of  the  fellow,  but  did  not  care  to  let  the  Major  know 
I  mistrusted  him.  But  he  soon  mistrusted  him  as  much  as  I. 
He  said  he  could  hear  a  gun  to  his  cabin,  and  steered  us  more 
northwardly.  We  grew  uneasy,  and  then  he  said  two  whoops 
might  be  heard  to  his  cabin.  We  went  two  miles  further ; 
then  the  Major  said  he  would  stay  at  the  next  water,  and  we 
desired  the  Indian  to  stop  at  the  next  water.  But  before  we 
came  to  water,  we  came  to  a  clear  meadow ;  it  was  very  light, 
and  snow  on  the  ground.  The  Indian  made  a  stop,  turned 
about ;  the  Major  saw  him  point  his  gun  toward  us  and  fire. 
Said  the  Major,  "  Are  you  shot? "  "  No,"  said  I.  Upon 
which  the  Indian  ran  forward  to  a  big  standing  white  oak, 
and  to  loading  his  gun  ;  but  we  were  soon  with  him.  I  would 
have  killed  him ;  but  the  Major  would  not  suffer  me  to  kill 
him.  We  let  him  charge  his  gun  ;  we  found  he  put  in  a  ball ; 
then  we  took  care  of  him.  The  Major  or  I  always  stood  by 
the  guns;  we  made  him  make  a  fire  for  us  by  a  little  run,  as 
if  we  intended  to  sleep  there.     I  said  to  the  Major,  "  As  you 


OO  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

will  not  have  him  killed,  we  must  get  him  away,  and  then  we 
must  travel  all  night."  Upon  which  I  said  to  the  Indian,  "  I 
suppose  you  were  lost,  and  fired  your  gun."  He  said,  he 
knew  the  way  to  his  cabin,  and  'twas  but  a  little  way.  "Well," 
said  I,  "  do  you  go  home ;  and  as  we  are  much  tired,  we  will 
follow  your  track  in  the  morning ;  and  here  is  a  cake  of 
bread  for  you,  and  you  must  give  us  meat  in  the  morning." 
He  was  glad  to  get  away.  I  followed  him,  and  listened  until 
he  was  fairly  out  of  the  way,  and  then  we  set  out  about  half  a 
mile,  when  we  made  a  fire,  set  our  compass,  and  fixed  our 
course,  and  travelled  all  night,  and  in  the  morning  we  were  on 
the  head  of  Piney  creek. 

Friday  28. — We  travelled  all  the  next  day  down  the  said 
creek,  and  just  at  night  found  some  tracks  where  Indians  had 
been  hunting.  We  parted,  and  appointed  a  place  a  distance 
off,  where  to  meet,  it  being  then  dark.  We  encamped,  and 
thought  ourselves  safe  enough  to  sleep. 

Saturday  29. — We  set  out  early,  got  to  Alleghany,  made  a 
raft,  and  with  much  difficulty  got  over  to  an  island,  alittle  above 
Shannopin's  town.  The  Major  having  fallen  in  from  off  the 
raft,  and  my  fingers  frost-bitten,  and  the  sun  down,  and  very 
cold,  we  contented  ourselves  to  encamp  upon  that  island.  It 
was  deep  water  between  us  and  the  shore  ;  but  the  cold  did 
us  some  service,  for  in  the  morning  it  was  frozen  hard  enough 
for  us  to  pass  over  on  the  ice. 

Sunday  30. — We  set  out  about  ten  miles  to  John  Frazier's, 
at  Turtle  creek,  and  rested  that  evening. 

Monday  31. — Next  day  we  waited  on  queen  Aliquippa,  who 
lives  now  at  the  mouth  of  Youghiogany.  She  said  she  would 
never  go  down  to  the  river  Alleghany  to  live,  except  the  Eng- 
lish built  a  fort,  and  then  she  would  go  and  live  there. 

Tuesday  January  i,  1754. — We  set  out  from  John  Frazier's 
and  at  night  encamped  at  Jacob's  cabins. 


COMMITTEE  OF  THE   OHIO  COMPANV.  87 

Wednesday  2. — Set  out  and  crossed  Youghiogany  on  the 
ice.     Got  to  my  house  in  the  new  settlement. 

Thursday  3. — Rain. 

Friday  4. — Set  out  for  Will's  creek,  where  we  arrived  on 
Sunday  January  6. 


^v. 


CHRISTOPHER  GIST. 


Christopher  Gist  was  of  English  descent.  His  grand- 
father was  Christopher  Gist,  who  died  in  Baltimore  County 
in  1691.  His  grandmother  was  Edith  Cromwell.  They  had 
one  child,  Richard,  who  was  Surveyor  of  the  Western  Shore 
and  was  one  of  the  Commissioners  for  laying  off  the  town  of 
Baltimore.  In  1705  he  married  Zipporah  Murray,  and  Chris- 
topher was  one  of  three  sons.  He  was  a  resident  of  North 
Carolina  when  first  employed  by  the  Ohio  Company.  He 
married  Sarah  Howard.  He  had  three  sons,  Nathaniel, 
Richard  and  Thomas,  and  two  daughters,  Anne  and  Violette. 
Nathaniel  was  the  only  son  that  married.  With  his  sons, 
Nathaniel  and  Thomas,  he  was  with  Braddock  on  his  fatal 
field  of  battle.  Urged  by  bribes  and  the  promise  of  rewards, 
two  Indians  were  persuaded  to  go  out  on  a  scouting  expedi- 
tion. As  soon  as  they  were  gone,  Christopher  Gist,  the 
General's  guide,  was  dispatched  on  the  same  errand.  On  the 
6th  both  Indians  and  Gist  rejoined  the  army,  having  been 
within  half  a  mile  of  the  fort.  Their  reports  were  favorable 
and  the  army  advanced.  After  Braddock's  defeat  he  raised  a 
company  of  scouts  in  Virginia  and  Maryland  and  did  service 
on  the  frontier,  being  then  called  Captain  Gist. 

In  1756  he  went  to  the  Carolinas  to  enlist  Cherokee 
Indians  for  the  English  service.  For  a  time  he  served  as 
Indian  Agent.  He  died  in  the  summer  of  1759,  of  smallpox, 
in  South  Carolina  or  Georgia.  Richard  Gist  was  killed  in  the 
battle  of  King's  Mountain.     Thomas  lived  on  the  plantation. 

(88) 


CHRISTOPHER  GIST.  89 

Anne  lived  with  him  until  his  death,  when  she  joined  her 
brother  Nathaniel  in  Kentucky.  Nathaniel  was  a  Colonel 
in  the  Virginia  Line,  during  the  Revolutionary  War,  and 
afterwards  removed  to  Kentucky,  where  he  died  early  in  the 
present  century.  He  left  two  sons,  Henry  Clay  and  Thomas 
Cecil.  His  eldest  daughter,  Sarah,  married  the  Hon.  Jesse 
Bledsoe,  United  States  Senator  from  Kentucky.  His  grand- 
son, B.  Gratz  Brown,  was  the  Democratic  candidate  for  Vice- 
President  in  1872.  The  second  daughter  of  Colonel  Gist  mar- 
ried Colonel  Nathaniel  Hart,  a  brother  of  Mrs.  Henry  Clay. 
The  third  daughter  married  Dr.  Boswell,  of  Lexington,  Ken- 
tucky. The  fourth  married  Francis  P.  Blair,  and  they  were 
the  parents  of  Montgomery  Blair  and  Francis  P.  Blair.  The 
fifth  married  Benjamin  Gratz,  of  Lexington,  Kentucky. 


FIRST  JOURNEY. 


NOTES  TO  CHRISTOPHER  GIST'S  JOURNAL  OF  1750-1. 


October  31,  1750.  —  Colonel  Cresap  was  an  Agent  and 
member  of  the  Ohio  Company,  see  Biographical  Sketch  in 
the  Appendix.  "Old  Town."  So  called  for  a  town  or 
village  of  the  Shawanese  Indians,  who  abandoned  the 
upper  Potomac  region  in  the  years  1727-9,  and  removed  to 
the  Ohio  and  Allegheny  rivers.  It  is  in  Old  Town,  District 
of  Allegheny  County,  Maryland,  fifteen  miles  southeast  of 
Cumberland,  on  the  north  side  of  the  Potomac,  and  opposite 
to  Green  Spring  Station,  on  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railway. 

November  3. — Gist's  route  from  Old  Town  lay  by  the 
Warrior's  Path,  along  the  base  of  the  Great  Warrior  Moun- 
tain, on  the  eastern  side,  passing  through  the  present  district 
of  Flintstone,  Allegheny  County,  Maryland,  and  the  town- 
ships of  Southhampton,  Monroe  and  Providence,  in  Bedford 
County,  Pennsylvania,  reaching  the  Juniata  at  the  Warrior's 
Gap,  near  the  village  of  Bloody  Run,  eight  miles  east  of  the 
present  town  of  Bedford ;  there  he  entered  the  old  Indian 
path  leading  westward.  From  the  Juniata,  where  Bedford 
now  stands,  two  paths  led  to  the  Ohio  (Allegheny) ;  the  upper 
directly  north  to  Frankstown,  thence  northwest  to  Venango 
(now  Franklin)  ;  the  lower  path  led  west  to  Shannopin's  Town 
(now  Pittsburgh) ;  the  latter  was  the  route  taken  by  Gist.' 

'  Hutchins' Map,  1778;  Scull's  ditto,  1770.  "  Traders' Table  of  Distances 
to  the  Ohio ;"  "  Colonial  Records  of  Pennsylvania,"  Vol.  V,  p.  750.  "Ac- 
count of  the  Road  to  Logstown,"  by  John  Harries,  in  1754,  "  Pennsylva- 
nia Archives,"  Vol.  II,  p.  135. 

(90) 


LEWIS 


MAP,   1775 


NOTES   TO   CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNAL   OF    I75O-SI.      9I 

November  5-9. — In  Shade  Township,  Somerset  County, 
Stony  Creek,'  a  branch  of  the  Conemaugh  River ;  the  path 
crossed  it  near  the  present  Stoyestown,  in  Somerset  County. 

November  11. — The  North  and  East  Forks  of  the  Quema- 
honing,  a  branch  of  Stony  Creek  ;  these  streams  here  flowing 
northeastward,  misled  Gist  into  supposing  they  emptied  into 
the  Susquehannah  ;  they  are  so  erroneously  laid  down  from 
his  notes  on  Fry  and  Jefferson's  map  of  175 1.  Que-Mahoning 
from  Curoa  (pine  trees,)  and  Mahonink  (a  stream,)  on  which 
there  is  a  Salt  lick.^ 

November  12. — The  ridge  of  the  Alleghenies  known  as 
Laurel  Hill. 

November  14. — This  old  Indian  town  stood  on  the  wide  and 
fertile  bottom  land  on  the  north  side  of  the  Loyalhanna 
Creek,  a  large  branch  of  the  Kiskiminitas  River.  The  present 
town  of  Ligonier,  in  Westmoreland  County,  occupies  the 
same  spot,  fifty-one  miles  east  of  Pittsburgh,  marked  "  Loyal 
Hannin  Old  Town — fifty  miles  to  Shannopin's  Town,"  on  a 
map  presented  to  the  Governor  and  Council  of  Pennsylvania, 
by  John  Pattin  (Indian  Trader),  and  Andrew  Montour  (a  Six 
Nation  Chief  and  Interpreter),  March  2,  1754.'  Laurel-hanne, 
signifying  the  middle  stream  in  the  Delaware  tongue.*  The 
stream  here  is  half  way  between  the  Juniata  at  Bedford  and 
the  Ohio  at  the  Forks. 

November  16. — The  path  here  left  the  Loyalhanna  and  by 
a  northwest  course  passed  through  the  Chestnut  Ridge,  at 

1  In  the  Delaware  tongue  "Ach'sin-hanac  "  or  "  Stony  Stream." 
'  Delaware. 

*  "Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V,  pp.  747,  750. 

•  Heckwelder  in  "  Transactions  of  the  Moravian  Historical  Society  for 
1872,"  p.  28.  McCuIlough,  "Narrative  and  Incidents  of  Border  Life," 
Lancaster,  1841,  p.  81.  See  also  "Trumbull  on  Indian  Geographical 
Names,"  Vol.  II,  p.  12.  "  Collection  of  the  Connecticut  Historical  Society." 


92  CHRISTOPHER    GIST  S    JOURNALS. 

the  Miller's  Run  Gap,  and  reached  the  creek  again,  at  the 
Big  Bottom,  below  the  present  town  of  Latrobe,  on  the  Penn- 
sylvania Central  Railway  ;  there  the  trail  forked,  one  branch 
led  northwest  down  the  creek  to  the  Kiskiminitas  River,  at 
Blacklegs  Indian  town,  by  the  mouth  of  the  creek  of  the  same 
name ;  thence  it  continued  down  to  the  Kiskiminitas  Old 
Town,  at  Old  Town  Run,  about  seven  miles  from  the  Al- 
legheny River.  The  other  branch,  or  main  trail  (travelled  by 
Gist),  led  directly  westward  to  Shannopin's  Town,  by  a 
course  parallel  with  and  a  few  miles  north  of  the  Pennsylva- 
nia Railroad.  The  courses  stated  by  Gist  for  the  i6th  and 
17th  November  are  manifestly  wrong;  the  distances  are 
given  much  more  correctly.' 

November  17. — This  camp  was  Cockey's  Cabin,  its  owner  a 
Delaware  Indian,  well  known  by  the  traders.  It  was  on 
Bushy  Run,  a  branch  of  Turtle  Creek,  near  the  place  of  the 
two  days'  battle  between  the  army  under  Colonel  Bouquet 
and  the  Indians,  led  by  Guyasuta  (Kiashuta),  August  sth  and 
6th,  1763,  about  three  miles  north  of  Penn  Station,  on  the 
Pennsylvania  Railroad,  and  twenty-three  miles  east  of  Pitts- 
burgh.' Shannopin's  Town,  on  the  bank  of  the  Allegheny 
River,  now  in  the  city  of  Pittsburgh,  between  Penn  Avenue, 
Thirtieth  Street  and  the  Two  Mile  Run,  in  the  Twelfth 
Ward.  It  was  small,  containing  about  twenty  wigwams, 
fifty  or  sixty  natives  and  twenty  warriors.'  It  was  much 
frequented  by  the  traders.  By  it  ran  the  main  Indian  trail 
from  the  east  to  the  west.     In  April,  1730,  Governor  Thomas, 

'  See  "  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V,  p.  750-1.  "  Pennsylvania  Archives," 
Vol.  II,  p.  135.  Scull's  Map,  1770.   Hutchins',  1778.  Evans  and  Mitchell's, 

1755- 

•■'"Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Vol.  II,  p.   135.     "Bouquet's  Expedition, 

Philadelphia,  1765."     "Virginia  State  Papers,  1875." 
3  "  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V,  p.  702  ;  id.,  Vol.  VII,  p.  561. 


NOTES   TO   CHRISTOPHER   GIST's  JOURNAL   OF    175O-5I.      93 

at  Philadelphia,  received  a  message  from  "  the  Chiefs  of  ye 
Delewares  at  Allegaeniny,  on  the  main  road,"  taken  down 
(written)  by  Edmund  Cartledge,  and  interpreted  by  James 
Le  Tort,  both  noted  traders.  Among  the  names  signed  to 
the  message  is  that  of  "  Shannopin  his  X  mark."  The  mes- 
sage of  the  chiefs  was  to  explain  the  cause  of  the  death  of  a 
white  man,  named  Hart,  and  the  wounding  of  another,  Robin- 
son, down  the  Ohio,  occasioned  by  rum.  The  bringing  of 
such  great  quantities  of  liquor  into  the  woods  they  desired 
the  Governor  to  prevent,  as  well  as  to  limit  the  number  of 
traders.  Shannopin's  name  appears  signed  to  several  docu- 
ments in  the  State  Archives.'  He  made  a  speech  to  Conrad 
Weiser,  at  Logstown,  September  15,  1748.''  He  was  present 
at  the  Conference  held  at  Philadelphia,  August  i,  1740,  be- 
tween the  Proprietary,  Thomas  Penn,  Governor  Thomas,  the 
Provincial  Council,  and  the  Delaware  and  Mingoe  Indians, 
from  Ohio,  Allegheny,  Shamokin,  etc'  Shannopin  died 
about  the  year  1749.* 

November  21. — The  width  of  the  river  here  is  about  the 
same  as  stated  in  the  journal,  although  the  banks  have  been 
partly  washed  away  by  freshets. 

November  24. — "At  Shannopin's  there  is  a  fording  place 
in  very  dry  times  and  the  lowest  down  the  river."*  In  the 
first  half  of  the  last  century  the  Allegheny  River  was  gener- 

'  "  Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Vol.  I,  p.  255  ;  do.,  p.  341. 

*  "  Journal  of  Weiser,"  Historical  Society  of  Pennsylvania  Collection, 
Vol.  I,  p.  29 ;  "  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V,  p.  355. 

•''  "  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  IV,  p.  441. 

•  "  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V,  p.  5 19.  See  also  "  Journals  of  Assembly," 
1754,  pp.  295  and  299.  "Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V,  pp.  746,  751,  etc.  Lon- 
don Magazine  for  June,  1754.  Evans  and  Mitchell's  Maps,  1755.  Fry 
and  Jefferson's  Maps,  1751. 

'  "  Analysis  of  Map  of  the  Middle  Colonies,"  by  Lewis  Evans,  1775,  p.  25. 


94  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

ally  called  the  Ohio,  of  which  it  is  the  head  branch.  "The 
Ohio"  by  the  Senecas.  Allegheny  is  the  name  of  the  same 
river  in  the  Delaware  language.  Both  words  signify  "  the  fine 
or  fair  river."  Post  was  a  Moravian  missionary  amongst  the 
Ohio  Indians  for  many  years.*  He  was  twice  married  among 
them  and  thoroughly  understood  various  Indian  dialects. 
He  was  often  employed  on  Indian  affairs  by  the  colonial 
authorities.  On  the  map  prefixed  to  "Washington's  Journal 
of  1753-4,  London,  1754,"  reprinted  by  Joseph  Sabin,  New 
York,  1865,  the  Allegheny  is  marked  "  The  Ohio  or  Allegheny 
River,"  and  the  main  stream  "  The  Ohio  or  the  Fair  River."''  In 
the  language  of  the  different  tribes  of  the  Iroquois,  or  Six  Na- 
tions, there  are  some  variations  of  the  word  Ohio,  none  of  its 
meaning.  In  the  Seneca,  Cayuga  and  Mohawk  dialects  it  is 
0-heeyo;  in  the  Onondago  and  Tuscarora  0-hee-yee;  in  the 
Oneida  0-hee,  the  same  as  Allegheny — "fair  or  beautiful" — 
which  the  French  rendered  "  La  Belle  Riviere."'  The  early  tra- 
ders in  Kentucky  and  on  the  Ohio  called  it  Allegheny,  or  Ohio, 
as  they  happened  to  trade  most  with  the  Iroquois  or  Delawares. 
On  the  map  of  Cornelli,  "  North  America  with  the  New  Dis- 
coveries of  the  Year  1688,"  published  at  Venice  in  1690,  the 
main  part  of  the  Ohio  is  laid  down  and  inscribed  "  R  Ohio  or 
la  Belle  Riviere,  said  by  the  savages  to  have  its  source  near 
the  Lake  Frontenac  "  (Ontario).  In  the  "  Proces  Verbal  " 
(Declaration)  of  the  taking  possession  of  Louisiana,  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Mississippi,  by  the  Sieur  de  la  Salle,  April  9, 

'  Christian  F.  Post  in  liis  Second  Journal,  1758,  London,  1759,  p.  17,  re- 
printed in  Appendix  to  Proud's  "  History  of  Pennsylvania,"  1798,  Vol.  II ; 
also  in  Craig's  "Olden  Time,"  Vol.  I. 

2  See  also  "  Weiser's  Journal,  1748."  "  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V,  p.  349. 
"  Collection  Pennsylvania  Historical  Society,"  Vol.  I,  p.  23. 

■'  "  Morgan's  League  of  the  Iroquois,"  p.  394.  "Collection  of  the  Con- 
necticut Historical  Society,  Vol.  II,  p.  13." 


MISHIMAKINAC 

Thj, 


OUTA-GAMIS 
OR 


Mew  Madrid   <V 


LEWIS  EVANS'  MAP,  1755-1775. 


K. 


NOTES   TO   CHRISTOPHER   GISt's   JOURNAL   OF    I75O-5I.      95 

1682,  the  names  "  Ohio  "  and  "  Alighin  "  are  both  evidently 
given  to  the  same  stream."  After  crossing  the  river  from 
Shannopins,  Gist's  route  was  by  the  old  path  which  ran  by 
the  line  occupied  now  by  East  and  West  Ohio  Streets,  in 
Allegheny  City,  to  Beaver  Avenue,  thence  along  it  and 
down  the  river  bank  to  Sewickley,  twelve  miles  below  Pitts- 
burgh. 

November  25. — Logstown.  This  once  noted  Indian  and 
French  town  stood  on  the  first  and  second  bank  on  the  north 
side  of  the  Ohio  River,  immediately  below  the  present  town 
of  Economy,  eighteen  miles  from  Pittsburgh,  in  Beaver 
County,  Pennsylvania ;  the  well-known  German  settlement, 
of  which  George  Rapp  was  the  head,  established  there  in 
1824.  Logstown  Run,  a  small  stream,  and  the  bar  in  the 
river  perpetuate  the  name  and  locality.  The  town  was  first 
described  by  Conrad  Weiser  in  the  Journal  of  his  visit  to  it 
in  August,  1748.'  William  Franklin  (son  of  Benjamin), 
afterwards  the  Royal  Governor  of  New  Jersey,  was  one  of 
Weiser's  company."  The  Shawanese  established  themselves 
here,  probably  soon  after  their  migration  from  the  Upper 
Potomac  country  and  Eastern  Pennsylvania,  in  1727-30.  In 
the  summer  of  1749  Captain  Bienville  de  Celeron,  in  com- 
mand of  a  detachment  composed  of  eight  subaltern  oflScers, 
six   cadets,  an  armorer,  twenty  soldiers,  one  hundred  and 

'  This  document,  preserved  in  the  French  Archives  at  Paris,  is  printed 
in  Sparks'  "  Life  of  La  Salle,"  Appendix,  p.  194.  "  American  Biographies, 
New  Series,  1864,  Vol.  I ;  also  in  "  Monette's  Valley  of  the  Mississippi," 
Vol.  I,  p  144.  "Historical. Collection  of  Louisiana,"  by  B.  F.  French,  1846, 
p.  49,  Vol.  L 

'' "  Collection  of  the  Pennsylvania  Historical  Society,"  Vol.  I,  p.  23, 
etc.     "  Colonial  Records  of  Pennsylvania,"  Vol.  V,  p.  348,  etc. 

'"Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Vol.  II,  pp.  10-15.  Evans'  "Analysis  of 
Map  of  the  Middle  Colonies,  1755,"  p.  10. 


96  CHRISTOPHER   GISx's   JOURNALS. 

eighty  Canadians,  thirty  Iroquois  and  twenty-five  Abanakis, 
descended  the  Allegheny  and  Ohio  rivers,  from  Canada,  for 
the  purpose  of  taking  military  possession  of  the  country.' 
Their  route  from  Lake  Erie  to  the  Allegheny  was  by  the  old 
Portage  to  the  head  of  Chautauqua  Lake  ;  thence  down  the 
lake  to  the  outlet,  through  to  the  Chenango  Creek,  and  by  it 
to  the  Allegheny.  In  evidence  of  the  French  king's  claim, 
leaden  plates,  with  suitable  inscriptions,  were  deposited  at 
various  points  along  the  rivers.  A  number  of  them  were 
found  in  after  years. ^  The  French  arrived  at  Logstown  on 
the  9th  or  loth  of  August,  encamped  and  remained  about  two 
days. 

Contrecceur,  to  whom  Ensign  Ward  surrendered  the  little 
fort  at  the  Forks  of  the  Ohio,  April  17,  1754,  where  Pitts- 
burgh now  stands,  and  who  named  it  Du  Ouesne,  was  one  of 
Celeron's  officers.  Coulon  de  Valliers,  to  whom  Washing- 
ton capitulated  at  Fort  Necessity,  in  June  of  the  same  year, 
was  another.  He  was  a  brother  of  Jumonville,  killed  in  a 
previous  contest  with  Washington's  troops.  George  Crog- 
han  arrived  at  Logstown  just  after  the  French  departed.'  He 
had  a  Trading  House  there,  in  which  Weiser  lodged  during 
his  visit  the  previous  year.*  Washington  and  Gist  remained 
here  five  days  while  on  their  way  to  Venango  and  Le 
Boeuf,  in  1753.^  Washington  was  again  here  in  1770  on 
his  way  to   the   Kanawha.^      In   June,    1752,  a  treaty   was 

'  See  "  Fort  Pitt." 

^  See  fac-simile  of  one  in  Craig's  "  Olden  Time,"  Vol.  II;  of  another 
in  "New  York  Colonial  History,"  Vol.  VI,  p.  611,  also  in  Hildreth's 
"Pioneer  History  "  and  De  Hass' "  Indian  Wars  of  Western  Virginia," 
1851.    "  Magazine  of  American  History,"  March,  1878. 

3"  New  York  Colonial  History,"  Vol.  VI,  p.  531 ;  do.,  Vol.  VII,  p.  267. 

*  "Weiser's  Journal." 

'  Journals  of  Washington  and  Gist,  1754. 

^  Journals  in  Sparks'  "  Life  of  Washington,"  Vol.  2,  Appendix ;  also  in 
Craig's  "Olden  Time,"  Vol.  I. 


NOTES   TO    CHRISTOPHER    GISTS   JOURNAL   OF    I75O-5I.      97 

made  here  between  the  Indians  and  the  Commissioners 
of  Virginia,  Fry,  Lomax  and  Patton.  Gist  was  present, 
George  Croghan  also.  Arthur  Lee,  in  his  "  Journal  of 
1784,"  mentions  Logstown  as  "  formerly  a  settlement  on  both 
sides  of  the  Ohio."'  A  settlement  on  the  south  side  of  the 
river  is  called  Indian  Logstown  in  "  Western  Navigation," 
edition  of  1814,  p.  76.^  George  Croghan,  in  his  Journal  of 
1765,  describes  Logstown  as  "an  old  Settlement  of  the 
Shawanese,  situated  on  a  high  bank  on  the  north  side  of  the 
Ohio  River,  a  fine  fertile  country  around  it."  An  error  in 
printing  "  south  "  for  "  north  "  has  occasioned  some  contro- 
versy. His  description  better  applies  to  the  north  side,  and 
is  so  written  in  the  manuscript.'  The  tract  on  the  south  side 
appears  to  have  been  surveyed  for  Alexander  M'Kee  in  1769,* 
and  was  advertised  for  public  sale  by  the  agents  of  the  State 
"at  Pittsburgh,  on  the  12th  day  of  October  next."  Three 
hundred  acres  of  land,  on  the  south  side  of  the  Ohio,  located 
by  Alexander  McKee,  including  his  house  and  improve- 
ments opposite  Logstown  and  confiscated  as  the  property  of 
the  said  Alexander  McKee.'  Tanacharison,  the  Half  King, 
with  Monakatoocha  and  a  number  of  that  tribe  (Six  Nations) 
lived  at  Logstown  in  1753-4." 

On  December  2,  1758,  soon  after  the  capture  of  Fort  Du 
Quesne,  the  Moravian  Missionary,  Christian  Frederick  Post, 
arrived  there  and  found  it  deserted  by  its  late  inhabitants. 
"  In  this  town,"  he  states,  "  there  is  forty  houses,  all  built 

'"Life  of  Lee,"  Vol.  II,  p.  384. 

''  See  also  Cumming's  "Western  Tour,"  Pittsburgh,  1816,  p.  80. 
'  Craig's  "  Olden  Time,"  Vol.  I,  p.  403.     Butler's  "  History  of  Ken- 
tucky," second  edition.    Appendix,  p.  459. 
*  "  Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Vol.  IV,  p.  346. 
'  Pennsylvania  Gazette,  Septembers,  1784. 
"  "  Washington's  Journal,  1754." 


98  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

for  them  by  the  French  and  lived  in  by  about  one  hundred 
and  twenty  warriors."'  In  Post's  original  Journal,  London, 
1759,  p.  57,  reprinted  in  Proud's  "History  of  Pennsylvania," 
Vol.  II,  Appendix,  and  in  Craig's  "  Olden  Time,"  Vol.  I,  he 
relates,  December  2,  1758 :  "  I  with  my  Companion  Kekus- 
cund's  son  came  to  Logstown  situated  on  a  high  hill.  On  the 
East  End  is  a  great  Piece  of  low  land  where  the  old  Logs- 
town  used  to  stand.  In  the  new  Logstown  the  French  have 
built  about  thirty  Houses  for  the  Indians.  They  have  a  large 
Corn  Field  on  the  South  Side  where  the  Corn  stands  un- 
gathered."  (Extract  from  the  "Deposition"  of  Major  Edward 
Ward,  taken  at  Pittsburgh,  March  10,  1777,  before  the  Com- 
missioners of  Virginia,  Wood  and  Simms.)  In  the  year  1752, 
and  before  his  surrender  to  the  French,  "  that  about  one-third 
of  the  Shawanese  Inhabited  Logstown  on  the  West  side  of 
the  Ohio  and  tended  Corn  on  the  East  side  of  the  river — and 
the  other  part  of  the  nation  lived  on  the  Scioto  river."^  The 
reader  will  observe  on  the  Map  that  the  Ohio  River  here 
makes  a  bend  and  runs  in  its  course  nearly  due  north.  The 
traders'  stores,  here  and  elsewhere  in  the  Ohio  Valley,  were 
sacked  and  plundered  by  the  Indians  on  the  outbreak  of  Pon- 
tiac's  War,  in  1763.  Some  of  the  traders  were  killed.''  In 
the  original  manuscript  account  and  affidavit  of  losses  suf- 
fered by  George  Croghan  and  Company,  in  1753,  appears  the 
item :  "  One  Store  House  at  the  Logstown  Twelve  miles 
from  Fort  Du  Quesne  on  the  north  west  side  of  Ohio  ;£iSO." 
After  the  capture  of  Fort  Du  Ouesne  and  erection  of  Fort 
Pitt,  in  1758,  Logstown  dwindled  to  insignificance,  although 
some  traffic  was  carried  on  there  with  the  Indians.     General 

'  Journal  in  "  Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Vol.  Ill,  p.  560. 
^  "  Virginia  State  Papers  Calendar,"  p.  278. 

"  "  Colonial  History  of  New  York,"  Vol.  VII,  p.  724.     "  Plain  Facts," 
p.  59.     Parkman's  "  Conspiracy  of  Pontiac,"  Vol.  II,  pp.  6,  10. 


NOTES   TO   CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNAL   OF    1 750-5 1.      99 

John  Gibson  had  a  small  trading  establishment  there  in  1777.' 
From  the  beginning  of  the  war  of  the  Revolution  it  had 
neither  trade  nor  inhabitants  ;  Fort  Pitt  absorbed  both. 

The  site  of  the  town  and  the  surrounding  scenery  is  very 
picturesque.  In  the  account  of  Colonel  Bouquet's  Expedi- 
tion against  the  Ohio  Indians,  in  1764,  occurs  this  passage : 
"  Friday,  October  5. — In  this  day's  march,  the  Army  passed 
through  Loggstown,  situated  seventeen  miles  and  an  half,  fifty 
seven  perches  by  the  path  from  Fort  Pitt.  This  place  was 
noted  before  the  last  war  for  the  great  trade  carried  on  there 
by  the  English  and  French,  but  its  inhabitants  abandoned  it 
in  the  year  1758.  The  lower  town  extended  about  sixty 
perches  over  a  rich  bottom  to  the  foot  of  a  low,  steep  ridge, 
on  the  summit  of  which,  near  the  declivity,  stood  the  upper 
town,  commanding  a  most  agreeable  prospect  over  the  lower 
and  quite  across  the  Ohio,  which  is  quite  five  hundred  yards 
wide  here,  and  by  its  majestic,  easy  current  adds  much  to  the 
beauty  of  the  place."'' 

Remains  of  many  of  the  houses  are  noted  in  the  draught 
of  the  survey  executed  for  the  State  of  Pennsylvania.'  Por- 
tions of  some  of  the  most  substantial  buildings  were  visible 
in  the  early  part  of  the  present  century.  For  the  location  of 
Logstown  see  Evans'  Map  of  1755.  Fry  and  Jefferson's  ditto, 
175 1.  Hutchins'  Map  in  "Bouquet."  Large  Map  of  ditto, 
1778.  Map  of  the  Ohio  River,  by  General  Victor  Collot,  1796. 

A  town  named  Montmorin  was  laid  out  on  a  large  scale  on 
the  site  of  Logstown  in  1788.   It  only  existed  on  paper.   Adver- 

'"  McDonald's  Sketches,"  p.  202.  Arnold's  "Campaign  Against 
Quebec,"  Munsell's  e'dition,  1877,  p.  6. 

''  "  Historical  Account  of  Bouquet's  Expedition,"  Philadelphia,  1765,  p. 
10.     Robert  Clarke  Co's.  Reprint,  Cincinnati,  1869,  p.  45. 

'  Land  Office  Records.  Tracts  numbers  18  and  19  in  Leet's  "  District 
of  Depreciation  Lands."     Howell's  Map  of  Pennsylvania,  1792. 


ICXJ  CHRISTOPHER    GISTS   JOURNALS. 

tisement  in  the  Pennsylvania  Gazette,  No.  3,005,  March   12, 
1788. 

On  the  plain,  a  short  distance  below,  the  army  under  Gen- 
eral Wayne,  known  as  the  "  Legion  of  the  United  States," 
encamped  from  November,  1792,  to  the  30th  of  April,  1793. 
The  place  was  called  Legionville. 

.  November  26. — Where  the  town  of  Rochester  now  stands, 
on  the  east  side  of  the  Beaver,  at  its  junction  with  the  Ohio. 
Barny  Curran  was  an  old  Indian  trader.  He  was  employed 
by  Washington  on  his  mission  to  Venango,  in  1753.^  Great 
Beaver  Creek,  named  for  King  Beaver ;  in  the  Delaware 
tongue  Amahkhanne  or  Beaver  Stream. 

November  27. — Gist  crossed  the  Beaver  to  the  west  side, 
where,  on  the  bottom  land,  now  occupied  by  the  town  of 
Bridgewater,  stood  the  small,  but  long  noted,  Indian  town, 
Sarikonk  or  Soh-kon,  a  Delaware  word  signifying  "at  the 
mouth  of  a  stream  "  (outlet). 

On  the  elevated  table-land  adjoining  the  bottom,  and  at  the 
west  end  of  the  present  county  town  of  Beaver,  another 
Indian  village  was  built  by  the  French,  in  1756.  Both  are 
thus  described  in  the  "  Historical  Account  of  Bouquet's 
Expedition,"  original  edition,  1765,  p.  10 :  "About  a  mile 
below  its  (Beaver  Creek)  confluence  with  the  Ohio  stood 
formerly  a  large  town,  on  a  steep  bank,  built  by  the  French, 
of  square  logs,  with  stone  chimneys,  for  some  of  the  Shawa- 
nese,  Delawares  and  Mingo  Tribes,  who  abandoned  it  in  the 
year  1758,  when  the  French  deserted  Fort  Du  Quesne.  Near 
the  fording  of  Beaver  Creek  stood  about  seven  houses,  which 
were  deserted  and  destroyed  by  the  Indians  after  their  defeat 
at  Bushy  Run,"  August  6,  1763,  "when  they  forsook  all  their 
remaining  settlements  in  this  part  of  the  country." 

'  Journal,  1754,  p.  2,  "  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V,  p.  440.  "  History  of 
Western  Pennsylvania,"  1846,  p.  40. 


\ 


NOTES   TO   CHRISTOPHER   GISTS   JOURNAL   OF    175O-51.       lOI 

King  Beaver  and  Shingiss,  his  brother  and  successor,  and 
noted  warrior  and  war  chief  of  the  Delawares,  resided  here 
until  the  Spring  of  1759,  after  the  erection  of  Fort  Pitt,  when 
they  removed  to  Kuskusky.'  They  afterwards  removed  to 
Muskingum.  "Shingis  Old  Town  "  is  mentioned  in  the  deed 
from  the  Six  Nations  to  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  executed 
at  Fort  Stanwix,  October  23,  1784,  and  now  in  the  State 
Archives  ;  also  printed  in  the  Minutes  of  the  General  Assem- 
bly for  1784-5,  p.  320. 

The  Act  of  Assembly  of  September  28,  1791,  authorized 
the  Governor  to  have  surveyed,  at  the  mouth  of  Beaver  Creek, 
"  two  hundred  acres  of  land  in  town  lots,  at  or  near  the 
ground  where  the  old  French  town  stood,"  now  the  Borough 
of  Beaver. 

Fort  Mcintosh  was  built  here  in  1778,  by  the  troops  under 
General  Lachlan  Mcintosh.  These  Indian  towns,  Soh-kon 
and  Shingoes,  were  prominent  places  of  rendezvous  for  war- 
riors, and  the  scene  of  much  cruelty  and  bloodshed  during 
the  Indian  and  French  wars.  The  Indian  trail  from  Shan- 
nopins  here  divided,  the  lower  (taken  by  Gist)  led  to  Tusca- 
rawas, the  upper,  along  the  west  bank  of  the  Beaver  to  Kus- 
kuskis  town,  on  the  Mahoning,  six  miles  above  the  forks  of 
Beaver,  where  Edenburgh,  Lawrence  County,  now  stands. 
Old  Kuskuskis  stood  on  the  Shenango,  between  the  Forks 
and  the  mouth  of  the  Neshannock  (where  New  Castle  now 
stands),  on  the  wide  bottom  on  the  west  side.  Kuskuskis 
was  divided  into  four  towns,  some  distance  apart.  ^    Portions 

'  Letter  of  Colonel  Hugh  Mercer  to  R.  Peters,  "  Colonial  Records," 
Vol.  VIII,  p.  305  ;  id.,  pp.  307,  309,  313.  "  Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Vol. 
Ill,  p.  634. 

""Christian  Fred.  Post's  Journal,"  September,  1758.  Hugh  Gibson's 
"  Narrative,"  Massachusetts  Historical  Collection,  Vol.  VI,  Third  Series, 
p.  144.  General  Wm.  Irvine's  Letters  in  "  Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Vol. 
XI,  p.  518,  etc.    "  Western  Annals,"  p.  358. 


102  CHRISTOPHER   GlSX's   JOURNALS. 

of  the  path  along  the  west  bank  of  the  Beaver  and  Mahoning, 
worn  deep  into  the  soil,  were  plainly  visible  and  often  seen 
by  the  writer  about  thirty  years  since,  and  some  he  is  credibly 
informed  yet  remain. 

Christian  Fred.  Post,  Moravian  Missionary,  sent  by  the 
Governor  of  Pennsylvania  and  General  Forbes  to  prevail  on 
the  Indians  of  the  Upper  Ohio  to  withdraw  from  the  French 
interest,  was  at  Soh-kon,  in  August,  1758,  and  again  in  the 
following  month  of  November.  At  first  roughly  received,  he 
was  finally  successful.  (See  his  first  and  second  Journals, 
published  in  1759;  reprinted  in  Proud's  "History  of  Penn- 
sylvania," 1798,  Appendix  to  Vol.  II.  Also,  in  Craig's  "Olden 
Time,"  Vol.  I,  and  (but  not  so  full)  in  "Pennsylvania  Ar- 
chives," Vol.  Ill,  pp.  520,  560,  563.) 

Post  states :  "  At  Beaver  Creek  there  is  thirty-eight  houses, 
all  built  by  the  French  for  the  Indians ;  some  with  stone 
chimneys.  When  all  their  men  are  at  home  they  can  send 
out  one  hundred  warriors."  Hugh  Gibson  was  a  prisoner  at 
Soh-kon  in  1757.  Narrative  before  referred  to.  (See  also 
Hutchins'  Map,  1778.  Map  in  "Bouquet."  Evans'  Map,  1755. 
Howell's  Map,  1792.  Heckwelder  in  "  Bulletin  of  Pennsyl- 
vania Historical  Society,"  Vol.  I,  p.  129.) 

November  27. — From  Shingis  town  the  trail  left  the  river, 
taking  a  northwest  course,  passing  near  the  present  village  of 
West  Salem,  Pennsylvania,  to  a  point  a  little  southeast  from 
New  Lisbon,  Columbiana  County,  Ohio,  on  nearly  the  same 
line  as  the  present  road  from  Beaver  to  New  Lisbon.' 

Captain  Hutchins  was  the  chief-engineer  in  the  army  of 
Bouquet,  and  has  laid  down  the  line  of  each  day's  march  and 

1  See  Howells'  and  Hutchins'  Maps,  especially  the  beautiful  map  of 
Hutchins  in  the  original,  a  Philadelphia  edition  of  "  Bouquet's  Expedition 
Against  the  Ohio  Indians,  in  1764." 


NOTES   TO   CHRISTOPHER   GIST'S   JOURNAL   OF    I75O-5I.       IO3 

encampment  minutely.  The  route  of  the  army  was  by  the 
old  Indian  trail  travelled  by  Gist. 

November  30. — To  the  northwest  corner  of  the  present 
Wayne  township,  Columbiana  County,  Ohio,  after  crossing 
the  west  or  "  last  branch  "  of  the  Little  Beaver  Creek,  having 
crossed  the  middle  and  east  branches  the  preceding  day. 
Little  Beaver  Creek,  or  Tank-amahk-hanne,  in  the  Delaware 
tongue. 

December  i,  1750. — To  a  point  near  Hanover,  on  the  Pitts- 
burgh and  Cleveland  Railway,  in  Columbiana  County. 

December  2. — A  little  south  of  Bayard,  in  the  same  county. 

December  4,  5. — Near  Oneida,  in  Carroll  County,  now 
known  as  Big  Sandy  Creek,  a  branch  of  the  Tuscarawas.  The 
Indians  applied  one  name,  "  Elk's  Eye,"  to  the  three  streams; 
in  modern  times  known  as  the  Big  Sandy,  Tuscarawas,  and 
Muskingum.  On  Evans'  Map  of  1755  and  Hutchins' of  1778 
the  Big  Sandy  is  named  Lanianshicolas,  now  the  Nimishicolas, 
and  correctly  applied  to  a  branch.  "  The  Delawares  say  the 
elks  were  so  plenty  on  that  river  and  so  tame  the  Indians 
could  come  so  near  as  to  see  into  their  eyes,  so  they  called 
the  river  Mooskingung  or  Elk's  Eye."  Zeisberger,  the  Mora- 
vian Missionary,  in  the  "  Bulletin  of  the  Pennsylvania  His- 
torical Society,"  Vol.  I,  p.  34 :  Elk's  Eye,  on  account  of  the 
number  of  elks  feeding  on  its  banks.  Loshiel's  "  History  of 
Moravian  Missions,  1794,"  p.  6  :  "  Mooshingung,  that  is  Elk's 
Eye  River.  Elk  in  their  language  being  called  Moos." '  The 
words  are  mostly  Narragansett,  "  Moos-soog  "  — the  great  ox, 
or  rather  a  red  deer.  Muskingum  is  usually  but  incorrectly 
defined — water  clear  as  an  elk's  eye. 

December  7. — This  town  of  the  Ottoways  stood  near  the 

'Rev.   David   Jones'   Journal,    1772;   original   edition,   pp.  68,   84. 
Sabin's  Reprint  of  ditto,  New  York,  1865,  pp.  90-111,  etc. 


104  CHRISTOPHER    GIST  S    JOURNALS. 

junction  of  the  Big  Sandy  and  Tuscarawas,  on  the  west  side 
of  the  latter  and  just  above  the  present  town  of  Bolivar.  At 
this  period  but  a  small  number  of  the  Ottawa  tribe  remained 
in  Eastern  Ohio.  By  Hutchins'  Maps  of  1764  and  1778,  and 
Evans'  Map  of  1755,  they  appear  to  have  had  a  village  on  the 
Cuyahoga  River,  and  "  Ottowas  Old  Fort  "  is  marked  on  the 
head  of  a  branch  of  the  White-woman's  Creek,  in  the  north- 
ern part  of  Richland  County,  from  which  was  a  four-mile 
portage  to  the  waters  of  the  river  Huron.  About  fifty  years 
since  the  Ottawa  tribe  held  large  reservations  of  land  on  the 
waters  of  the  Maumee.  In  1760  this  village  was  known  as 
King  Beaver's  Town,  its  occupants  being  Delawares. 

Major  Robert  Rogers,  on  his  way  from  Detroit  to  Fort 
Pitt,  arrived  there  on  January  13,  1761.  He  mentions  "the 
number  of  warriors  in  this  town  is  about  one  hundred  and 
eighty." ' 

Bouquet's  army,  in  1764,  made  their  twelfth  encampment 
here,  after  leaving  Fort  Pitt,  from  which  Captain  Hutchins 
computed  the  distarjce  to  be  one  hundred  and  sixteen  miles. 
They  found  "Tuscarawas  a  place  exceedingly  beautiful  in 
situation,  lands  rich,  and  on  the  northwest  side  an  entire 
level  plain,  upwards  of  five  miles  in  circumference,"  and  "from 
the  number  of  ruined  houses,  supposed  the  Indians  who 
inhabited  the  place  and  are  with  the  Delawares  to  have  had 
about  one  hundred  and  fifty  warriors."''  This  is  a  noted  spot 
in  the  early  history  of  Ohio.  Christian  Fred  Post,  the  Mora- 
vian Missionary,  established  a  station  on  the  north  side  of  the 
Tuscarawas,  in  the  present  Stark  County,  in  the  year  1761, 
and  erected,  it  is  claimed,  the  first  house  in  Ohio."     Fort 

'  Journal,  1760-1,  p.  234. 

^  "Journal  of  Bouquet's  Expedition,  1765,"  p.  13,  original  edition. 
'  "  Heckwelder's  Narrative,"   p.  61.      "  Life  of   Zeisberger,"  by  De 
Schweinitz,  p.  256.    "  Beatty's  Journal,"  1766,  p.  40. 


NOTES   TO   CHRISTOPHER   GIST'S   JOURNAL   OF    I75O-5I.        IO5 

Laurens,  the  most  western  military  post  erected  by  the 
Americans  during  the  Revolution,  stood  just  below  the  site 
of  Tuscarawas  town. 

The  Greenville  Treaty  Line,  of  1795,  extended  from  the 
mouth  of  Cuyahoga  "  to  the  crossing  place  above  Fort  Lau- 
rens, thence  westerly  to  Laramie's  store,"  on  a  branch  of  the 
Great  Miami,  in  the  present  Shelby  County.  It  marked  the 
boundary  between  the  lands  of  the  Indian  tribes  and  those 
they  ceded  to  the  United  States.'  The  great  Indian  trails 
radiated  from  this  point  in  various  directions. 

December  9. — Margaret's  Creek.  The  trail  crossed  it  in 
the  present  Franklin  Township,  Tuscarawas  County,  near 
Strasburgh.  This  stream  was  named  for  Margaret  Montour, 
usually  called  "  French  Margaret,"  the  daughter  of  Madame 
Montour.  This  stream  was  afterwards  called  Sugar  Creek  ; 
it  empties  into  the  Tuscarawas  at  Dover. 

December  10. — A  branch  of  Margaret's  Creek. 

December  11. — To  a  point  in  Buck's  Township,  Tuscarawas 
County. 

December  12. — Near  the  mouth  of  White  Eyes  Creek,  in 
Coshocton  County. 

December  14. — This  was  a  large  and  important  town  of 
the  Wyandots,  on  the  Tuscarawas,  the  head  branch  of  the 
Muskingum  River,  within  a  mile  from  the  "Forks,"  where 
Coshocton  now  stands.  Marked  "  Old  Wyandot  Town  "  on 
Hutchins'  Map,  in  Bouquet,  1764 ;  Owendot's  Town  on  Dr. 
Mitchell's  Map  of  1755.  This  town  was  abandoned  by  the 
Wyandots  prior  to  1760,  probably  soon  after  the  capture  of 
Fort  Du  Quesne,  in  1758.     They  were  there  in  1756.'    Gist 

•  "  Treaty  of  Greenville,  August  3,  1795."  American  State  Papers,  Vol. 
V,  p.  562.    State  Maps  of  Ohio,  1815,  1831  and  1869. 

'•'  Letter  of  Colonel  John  Armstrong  to  Governor  Denny,  December  22, 
1756.     Pennsylvania  Archives,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  83. 
8 


I06  CHKISTOPHER    GIST'S   JOURNALS. 

mentions  Muskingum  as  though  it  was  the  name  of  the  town. 
He  should  have  written  "a  town  of  the  Wyandots  at  the 
Muskingum,"  the  latter  being  an  Algonquin  or  Delaware 
word.  The  Indians  do  not,  like  the  whites,  give  every  town 
or  village  a  name,  but  they  are  known  by  the  name  of  the  place, 
the  locality,  head  chief,  etc.  "They  preferred  to  describe  a  man 
or  a  river  or  town,  by  some  quality  or  remarkable  feature 
rather  than  designate  the  object  by  a  name.'  Thus  Chilli- 
cothe  towns  in  Ohio — Upper,  Lower  and  Old — simply  meant 
towns  of  the  Chillicothe  tribe  of  the  Shawnese.''  Soh-kon,  out- 
let (a  village)  at  the  outlet.  Shannopin,  from  the  head  chief, 
Kittanning.  Kittan,  great,  ung-on,  or  at  the  great  river.' 
The  Wyandots,  or  Hurons,  were  ancient  occupants  of  Cen- 
tral and  Eastern  Ohio  and  Northwestern  Pennsylvania,  to 
which  region  they  retreated  from  Canada,  to  escape  the  fury 
of  the  conquering  Iroquois,  or  Five  Nations,  in  the  middle  of 
the  seventeenth  century.*  The  Wyandots  are  called  Tionon- 
aties,  Petuns  or  Petuneuae,  Tobacco  Indians,  from  their  indus- 
trious habit  of  cultivating  that  plant.  Petun  (obsolete  French 
for  tobacco  derived  from  the  Brazilian)  being  a  nickname 
given  to  them  by  the  French  traders.'  In  the  Mohawk  dialect 
of  the  Iroquois  the  name  for  tobacco  is  0-ye-aug-wa. "  In  the 
Huron  of  La  Hontan,  Vol.  II,  p.  103,  Oyngowa ;  and  in  Cam- 
pinus  "  History  of  New  Sweden,"  in  the  Mingo. 

' "  Transactions  of  the  Historical  and  Philosophical  Society  of  Ohio," 
Vol.  I,  p.  23s. 

^  John  Johnson,  in  Butler's  "  Kentucky,"  last  page,  Appendix. 

''  See  Trumbull  on  "  Indian  Geographical  Names,"  Connecticut  Histori- 
cal Society,  Vol.  II,  p.  43,  etc. 

*"  American  Antiquarian  Society  Transactions,"  Vol.  I,  p.  271-2;  id. 
Vol.  II,  p.  72.    Charlevoix's  "  History  of  New  France." 

'  "  Historical  Magazine,"  Vol.  V,  O.  S.,  1861,  p.  263. 

"  Gallatin's"  Synopsis  American  Aboriginal  Archives,"  Vol.  II,  p.  484. 


NOTES   TO   CHRISTOPHER   GISt'S  JOURNAL   OF    175O-5I.       IO7 

The  flotilla  of  Celeron,  before  mentioned  as  on  its  way  down 
the  Ohio,  arrived  at  the  mouth  of  the  Muskingum  on  the  15th 
of  August,  1749,  and  on  the  i6th  they  buried  a  lead  plate  in 
the  western  bank  of  that  stream,  bearing  the  inscription 
"  Riviere  Yenangue,"  and  on  the  map  of  Father  Bonnecamp 
— a  Jesuit  mathematician  who  accompanied  the  expedition — 
the  Muskingum  is  marked  "  R.  Yanangue  konan.  "  On  Bel- 
lin's  Map,  in  Charlevoix's  original  edition,  1744,  it  is  named 
Chenangue.  The  meaning  clearly  is  from  the  Iroquois ;  from 
Ynango — tobacco — and  Konan  people,  or  river  on  which  the 
tobacco  people — Wyandots  or  Petuns — have  a  town,  referring 
to  the  town  at  which  Gist  had  now  arrived. 

Colonel  John  Johnston,  for  many  years  United  States  Agent 
for  the  Ohio  Indians,  in  his  valuable  "Specimens  of  the 
Wyandot  Language,"  gives  the  signification  of  Muskingum 
as  "  a  place  of  residence  ; "  but  again  erroneously  states  it  to 
mean  a  town  on  the  river  side  in  the  Delaware.  "  The  Shaw- 
nese,"  he  adds,  "  call  it  Wakitama  Sepe,  which  has  the  same 
signification."  * 

De  Witt  Clinton,  in  a  letter  to  the  American  Antiquarian 
Society,  in  1827,  erroneously  supposed  the  town,  to  which  allu- 
sion is  made,  to  be  "  the  celebrated  remains  of  an  ancient  town  at 
Marietta."  He  is  also  in  error,  in  the  same  letter,  in  the  sup- 
position that  the  leaden  plate  deposited  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Muskingum,  found  and  dug  up  in  1798,  to  "  have  been  origi- 
nally deposited  at  the  mouth  of  the  Venango  (French  Creek) 
above  Pittsburgh."  He  was  misled  by  the  similarity  of  the 
name  Yznangue  with  Venango,  as  it  is  now  written.  The 
date  on  the  plate  should  have  undeceived  him.  However, 
Venango  was  an  old  village  of  the  Wyandots,  or  Tobacco  In- 
dians.    Washington,  in  his  Journal  of  1753,  mentions  it  as  the 

'  American  Antiquarian  Society,  Vol.  I,  pp.  297,  298. 


I08  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's    JOURNALS. 

site  of  an  old  Indian  town  ;'  and  it  is  probable  that  wherever 
the  name  Chenango  occurs  in  early  times  or  on  early  maps, 
it  indicates  the  site  of  a  town  of  the  tobacco  tribe — Wyandots 
— or  of  a  place  where  Indian  tobacco  was  cultivated.' 

The  claim  of  the  Wyandots  to  Central  Ohio  was  admitted 
by  the  United  States,  who  made  them  compensation  therefor.' 

The  Wyandots  released  to  Pennsylvania,  at  the  latter 
mentioned  treaty,  their  claim  to  the  western  portion  of  that 
State.  There  was  a  Wyandot  town  on  the  Big  Beaver,  on  the 
east  side,  nineteen  miles  above  its  mouth.  On  its  site  the 
Moravians,  in  1770,  erected  their  town  of  Friedenstadt.'' 

The  name  of  "Little  Mingoes,"  applied  by  Gist  to  the 
Wyandots,  I  have  not  observed  elsewhere.  The  Wyandots, 
or  Hurons,  were  of  the  original  Iroquois  stock  (or  Mengine 
changed  to  Mingo). 

Croghan's  Trading  House,  here  mentioned,  was  afterwards 
(1753)  with  the  goods  stored  in  it,  seized  by  the  French.  In 
the  original  MS.  account  of  losses  suffered  by  George  Crog- 
han  &  Co.,  occasioned  by  the  French,  during  his  trades  in 
the  Ohio  country,  appears  this  item  :  "  One  store  House  at 
Muskingum  ;£'i50."  Croghan's  affidavit  is  attached  to  it,  dated 
at  Carlisle,  April  24,  1756.  Four  traders  were  captured — 
Joseph  Falkner  of  New  York,  Luke  Erwin  of  Pennsylvania, 
Thomas  Burk  of  Lancaster,  Pennsylvania,  and  John  Pattin  of 

'Journal,  original  edition,  p.  17. 

2  See  "Transactions  American  Antiquarian  Society,"  Vol.  II,  p.  535. 
Hildreth's"  Pioneer  History  of  Ohio,"  1848,  p.  22.  "American  Magazine," 
March,  1878,  in  which  is  the  map  of  Celeron's  Route,  by  O.  H.  Marshal,  of 
Buffalo. 

^  Declaration  annexed  to  the  Treaty  at  Fort  Harmar,  in  1789.  "  American 
State  Papers,  Indian  Affairs,"  Vol.  I,  p.  7.  Treaty  of  September  29,  1817, 
Vol.  II;  do..  Treaty  at  Fort  Mcintosh,  etc. 

*  Lochiel's  "  History  of  Missions.  "  De  Schweinitz's  "  Life  of  Zeis- 
berger." 


NOTES   TO    CHRISTOPHER   GIST'S   JOURNAL   OF    175O-5I.       lOQ 

Chester  County,  Pennsylvania.  The  first  two  were  in  the 
employ  of  George  Croghan  &  Co.  Pattin  was  seized  at  Fort 
Miami.  Erwin,  Burke,  and  Falkner,  were  captured  at  a  place 
called  "  Argentout "  (Wyandot),  near  the  little  Lake  Otsan- 
derkat  (Sandusky  Bay),  the  former  stronghold  of  the  Huron 
Chief  Nicholas,  who  in  1747  rebelled  against  the  French  and 
built  himself  a  Fort  there.' 

The  traders  were  captured  by  orders  of  Celeron,  Comman- 
der at  Detroit, '^  to  which  place  they  were  taken  and  confined 
in  the  fort  for  five  months,  then  taken  to  Niagara  and  Quebec. 
At  the  latter  place  Falkner  was  left,  on  account  of  sickness  ; 
the  other  three  were  sent  to  Rochelle,  France,  and  there 
imprisoned  for  three  months,  then  liberated  and  returned  to 
America.  Pattin's  goods,  to  the  value  of  eight  or  nine  hun- 
dred pounds,  were  seized  when  he  was  captured.' 

December  17. — The  "  New  Fort"  which  the  French  were 
building  on  one  of  the  branches  of  Lake  Erie,  and  to  which 
Croghan  supposed  the  French  took  the  captives,  is  erroneously 
stated  by  Mr.  Bancroft  to  be  Fort  Sandusky.  There  has 
been    much    uncertainty    respecting    the    location   of    the 

1  Letter  of  the  Marquis  de  la  Jonquiere  to  M.  Rouille.  Also  from  same 
to  Governor  Clinton  of  New  York.  New  York :  Colonial  History,  Vol. 
VI,  p  733 ;  ditto,  Vol.  X,  p.  240.  Pennsylvania  Colonial  Records,  Vol.  V,  p. 
556.  See  the  examination  and  depositions  of  the  prisoners,  by  the  Governor 
of  Canada,  La  Jonquiere,  at  Montreal,  in  June  1751,  in  "  The  Conduct  of 
the  Ministry,  a  Memorial,  etc.,"  pp.  92-106.  English  edition,  1777. 
French  original  edition,  1756,  pp.  89-100.  See  Pennsylvania  Colonial 
Records,  Vol.  V,  p.  522. 

^  New  York  Colonial  History,  Vol.  X,  p.  251. 

^  See  his  petition  to  the  Assembly  of  Pennsylvania  for  relief.  Journals  of 
Assembly,  October  17,  1752.  Letter  of  Earl  of  Albemarle,  from  Paris, 
March  i,  1752,  to  the  Earl  of  Holderness.  New  York  Colonial  History. 
Vol.  X,  p.  241.  John  Pattin's  "  Narrative  of  his  Captivity,  1750,"  Pennsyl- 
vania Historical  Society. 


no  CHRISTOPHER    GISTS    JOURNALS. 

French  Fort  Sandusky  and  also  of  the  British  Post 
subsequently  erected.  In  the  French  official  reports,  from 
1748  to  1763,  there  is  no  mention  of  any  fort  at  Sandusky 
(excepting  that  of  the  Huron  Chief  Nicholas),  while  the  Posts 
at  Detroit,  Miami  and  Niagara  are  frequently  referred  to,  and 
detailed  accounts  of  their  condition  given.' 

There  is  no  mention  of  a  fort  at  Sandusky  in  Colonel  James 
Smith's  Narrative.  He  lived  and  hunted  with  the  Indians 
along  the  south  shore  of  Lake  Erie,  from  the  Cuyahoga  to 
the  Maumee,  during  the  five  years  of  his  captivity — 1755  to 
1760.^  Nor  is  there  anything  said  of  Fort  Sandusky  in  the 
journals  of  Major  Robert  Rogers,  who  was  sent  with  a  detach- 
ment of  troops,  by  General  Amherst,  in  1760,  to  Detroit,  to 
receive  the  surrender  of  that  and  all  other  western  posts  held 
by  the  French,  in  accordance  with  the  terms  of  the  capitu- 
lation of  Canada,  by  Governor  Vaudreuil.' 

The  Fort  of  the  Huron  (Wyandot)  war  chief,  Nicholas, 
was  probably  on  what  is  now  called  Cherry  Island,  in  the 
marshes,  between  Green  Creek  and  the  Sandusky  River, 
about  two  miles  above  the  mouth  of  the  latter.  It  now  con- 
tains but  a  few  acres  of  good  land,  above  overflow,  and  is  the 
most  inaccessible  of  the  islands  in  the  vast  Sandusky  marshes, 
and  only  to  be  reached  by  canoes  or  small  boats.  Neverthe- 
less, Nicholas,  apprehensive  of  French  attack,  with  the 
assistance  of  their  Indian  allies,  early  in  the  Spring  of  1748, 

'  "  Memorial  of  De  Galissoniere  on  the  Canadian  Posts,  December  10, 
1752  ;"  New  York  Colonial  History,  Paris,  Vol.  X,  p.  230.  "  Dispatch  of 
Longueil  to  Rouille,  April,  1752;  "  id.,  pp.  245-251. 

'  "  Smith's  Narrative  "  Ohio  Valley,  Historical  Series  :  R.  Clarke  &  Co., 
1870. 

"Journals  of  Rogers,  London,  1765  ;  also,  "  Journals  of  George  Croghan, 
Fort  Pitt  to  Detroit,i76o-i,"  in  Massachusetts  Historical  Collection ;  Fourth 
Series,  Vol.  IX,  pp.  362,  366. 


NOTES   TO   CHRISTOPHER   GISTS   JOURNAL   OF    175O-5I.       Ill 

burned  his  fort  and  village,  and  with  119  warriors  of  his  na- 
tion, men,  women  and  baggage,  took  the  route  to  White 
River.'  This  probably  is  the  fort  "Junundat,  built  in  1754," 
marked  as  on  the  east  side  of  the  Sandusky  River,  near  the 
Bay,  on  Evans'  Map  of  1755,  and  Pownall's  of  1776.  If  this 
location  is  correct,  the  Wyandot  fort  and  village  must  have 
been  on  Peach  and  Graveyard  Islands,  directly  at  the  mouth 
of  the  river,  on  the  east  side.  On  these  same  maps  Fort 
Sandusky  is  laid  down  on  the  west  side,  opposite  Junundat. 
Both  river  and  bay  being  very  erroneously  delineated  on  Dr. 
Mitchell's  Map,  published  by  authority  of  the  British  Govern- 
ment, in  1755  :  "  Sandusky  usurped  by  the  French  in  1751  is 
marked  at  the  river's  mouth  on  the  west  side  ;  the  river  itself 
is  named  Blanc." 

On  the  map  of  D'Anville,  Paris,  1755,  "Sandousche"  is 
marked  on  the  west  side  of  the  river  Blanc,  at  its  mouth,  and 
on  the  English  map  of  the  same  date,  the  location  is  the 
same,  marked  "Fr.  Fort  Sanduski."  On  the  map  of  M. 
Bellin,  the  French  Geographer  Royal,  Paris,  1755,  the  "Fr. 
Ft.  Sanduski "  is  placed  at  the  west  side  of  the  mouth  of 
the  river  and  noted  as  an  old  or  "  Ancient  Fort  abandoned  ; " 
and  in  the  "  Remarques  sur  la  Carte,"  published  with  the 
Atlas,  the  author,  in  describing  the  country  around  Lake 
Erie,  observes  that  "  where  the  river  flows  into  the  end  of  the 
Bay  of  Sandusky,  we  (the  French)  have  a  fort  and  habitation." 
"  The  French  go  in  three  days  from  Fort  De  Troit  to  Fort  San- 
doskes,  which  is  a  small  pallisaded  Fort  with  about  twenty 
men,  situated  on  the  south  side  of  Lake  Erie  and  was  built 
in  the  latter  end  of  the  year  1750."  From  narrative  of  John 
Pattin,  Indian  trader,  of  his  captivity  in  1750.''  Among  the 
"King's    Maps    and   Drawings,"  .in    the    Library    of    the 

'  "French  Journal  of  Occurrences  in  Canada,"  1747-8;  "New  York 
Colonial  History,"  Vol.  .X,  pp.  162,  178;  id.,  Vol.  VI,  pp.  706,  733. 
^  Historical  Society  of  Pennsylvania. 


112  CHRISTOPHER    GISTS    JOURNALS. 

British  Museum,  the  writer  found  and  had  copied  a  large 
and  finely  executed  MS.  map  of  Lake  Erie  and  the  Allegheny 
River,  with  the  British  Posts  of  Presque  Isle,  Le  Bceuf,  Ve- 
nango, and  Fort  Pitt,  made  about   1760. 

A  fort  destroyed  is  laid  down  on  the  northwest  shore  of 
Lake  Sandusky,  about  two  miles  east  of  the  entrance  to  the 
Little  Portage,  or  Indians'  carrying  place,  and  a  half  mile  in 
length  between  Sandusky  Bay  and  the  mouth  of  the  Portage 
River,  where  Port  Clinton  now  stands.  This  was  on  the  usual 
route  taken  by  the  Indians  and  French  from  and  to  Detroit 
and  the  North.  "  The  French  erected  a  post  here  (Sandusky) 
in  the  year  1754  and  abandoned  it  in  the  year  1759.  This  post 
was  established  principally  with  a  view  of  keeping  up  the 
communication  with  Detroit,  Fort  DuQuesneand  Presque  Isle 
and  of  assisting  parties  of  warriors  residing  northward  of  Lake 
Erie,  when  on  their  way  to,  and  returning  from,  the  frontiers  of 
the  different  States."^  The  earlier  date  of  the  erection  of  the 
French  Fort  at  Sandusky,  1^50,  as  stated  by  Pattin,  seems  to 
be  the  correct  one,  as  well  as  its  location  near  the  "  Little 
Portage,"  where  a  "  Fort  destroyed "  is  marked  on  a  small 
sketch  of  the  bay,  the  location  of  the  Indian  villages  and  the 
British  block-house,  made  by  an  officer,  m  1761,  and  now 
with  the  "Bouquet"  MSS.  in  the  Library  of  the  British 
Museum. 

In  the  latter  part  of  1761  the  British  erected  a  block-house 
on  the  south  shore  of  Sandusky  Bay,  at  the  mouth  of  Mills 
Creek.^  "  The  block-house  at  Sandusky  is  finished  ;  Lieuten- 
ant Meyer  and  Ensign  Paully  remain  yet  there  with  thirty 

'  MS.  account  of  the  country  and  "  Route  from  Fort  Pitt  to  Sandusky 
and  thence  to  Detroit,"  by  Captain  Thomas  Hutchins,  1761.  Library  of 
Pennsylvania  Historical  Society,  Philadelphia. 

^  Letter  of  Colonel  Bouquet  to  General  Amherst,  from  Fort  Pitt,  De- 
cember 2,  1761. 


NOTES    TO    CHRISTOPHER    GIST's    JOURNAL    OF    I75O-5I.       II3 

men."'  Lieutenant  Meyer  commanded  during  tiie  erection  of 
the  fort.  Its  location  is  correctly  marked  on  the  map  of  Cap- 
tain Thomas  Hutchins,  of  1778.  Also  on  his  map  in  the 
historical  account  of  Bouquet's  Expedition  of  1764.  Cap- 
tain Hutchins  was  then  an  engineer  in  the  British  service. 
He  was  at  Fort  Sandusky  in  1762.' 

The  reader  doubtless  remembers  that  the  British  Fort  San- 
dusky shared  the  fate  of  many  of  the  western  posts,  being 
captured  and  destroyed  by  the  Indians  during  the  Pontiac 
War  of  1763. 

December  25,  1750.  Christmas  Day. — This,  no  doubt,  was 
the  first  Protestant  religious  service  ever  held  within  the  limits 
of  the  present  State  of  Ohio.  The  first  Protestant  sermon 
was  preached  by  the  Rev.  Charles  Beatty,  on  the  21st  of  Sep- 
tember, 1766,  at  Newcomerstown,  about  sixteen  miles  farther 
up  the  Muskingum.  The  Rev.  George  Duffield  preached  in 
the  afternoon  of  the  same  day,  at  the  same  place.  These 
ministers  were  Presbyterian  Missionaries,  sent  out  by  the 
Synods  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia.'  On  the  14th  of 
March,  1771,  the  Rev.  David  Zeisberger,  Moravian  Mission- 
ary, preached  his  first  sermon  in  Ohio,  in  the  same  town.*  The 
Rev.  David  Melluse,  Missionary  from  Connecticut,  preached 
here  in  September,  1772.' 

'  "  Diary  of  Sir  William  Johnson,"  in  Appendix  to  Stone's  Life  of  Sir 
William,  Vol.  II,  p.  466.  Letter  of  Colonel  Bouquet  to  General  Monck- 
ton,  from  Fort  Pitt,  July  24,  1761.  Massachusetts  Historical  Collection, 
Vol.  IX,  Fourth  Series,  p.  434,  and  same  to  the  same,  August  12,  1761,  id., 
p.  438. 

-  Letter  of  Colonel  Bouquet  to  Ensign  PauUy,  April  3,  1762,  in  Gazette, 
Philadelphia,  April  27,  1791.    Treaty  of  Greenville. 

■'  "  Beatty's  Journal  of  a  Two  Month's  Tour  West  of  the  Allegheny 
Mountains  in  1766,"  London,  1768,  pp.  55-56. 

•  "  Life  of  Zeisberger,"  by  E.  DeSchweinitz,  1870,  p.  366. 

»  "Journal  of  Missions,  Hartford,  1773,"  of  Thomas  Burney,  see  note  to 
February  24. 


114  CHRISTOPHER    GISTS    JOURNALS. 

January  4,  1751.  —Michael  Taaf,  or  Teaff,  was  a  partner  in 
the  Indian  trade  with  William  Trent  and  George  Croghan. 
He  resided  on  the  Susquehanna,  a  little  below  Harris'  Ferry.* 

January  9,  1751. — This  English  trader  captured  was  John 
Pattin,  taken  at  Fort  Miami.^ 

January  14. — The  answer  of  the  King  and  Council  was, 
given  to  George  Croghan  and  Andrew  Montour  for  the 
Governor  of  Virginia,  at  Logstown,  May  29,  1751.  They 
say,  they  are  now  at  war  with  the  Southern  Indians ;  may 
be  soon  struck  by  the  French,  so  that  it  is  not  in  their 
power  to  go  down  to  hear  what  their  great  Father,  the  King 
of  Great  Britain  has  to  say.  They  expect  that  their  Father's 
speeches  will  be  sent  here  where  their  brothers  of  Penn- 
sylvania have  kindled  a  Council  Fire.** 

January  15. — Reaching  the  Whitewoman's  Creek,  about 
four  miles  west  of  the  present  town  of  Coshocton.  Mary 
Harris,  the  white  woman,  doubtless  was  the  same  person  who 
was  captured  at  the  assault  and  burning  of  Deerfield,  Massa- 
chusetts, by  the  French  and  Indians  from  Canada,  February 
29,  1704.  A  list  of  the  killed  and  prisoners  is  given  in  the 
Appendix  to  the  fourth  edition  of  the  "Captivity  and  Deliv- 
erance of  the  Rev.  John  Williams,  of  Deerfield,  Massachu- 
setts, 1758."  The  name  of  Mary  Harris  is  marked  among 
those  still  absent.  It  appears  she  left  the  village,  where  Gist 
saw  her,  and  returned  to  Canada,  as  in  a  "  Memoir  of  the 
Rev.  John  Williams,  by  his  grandson,  Stephen  W.  Williams, 
Northampton,  Massachusetts,  1853,"  it  is  stated,  on  page 
121,  that  "as  lately  as  the  year  1756  Mary  Harris,  who  was 
one  of  the  female  prisoners  and  a  child  at  the  time  of  the 
capture  of  the  town,  resided  at  Cahnawaga  "  (near  Montreal). 

'  "  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  VI,  p.  150. 
•^  See  note  to  December  17th,  antff. 
<  "  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V,  p.  537. 


NOTES    TO   CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNAL   OF    I7SC-51.       II5 

"  She  was  at  that  time  a  married  woman  and  had  several 
children,  one  of  whom  was  an  officer  in  the  service  of  France." 
The  Cahnawagas,  or  French  Mohawks,  frequented  the 
country,  both  north  and  south  of  the  Ohio.  Their  chief  town 
was  at  the  rapids  of  St.  Louis,  near  Montreal,  where  a  num- 
ber of  the  tribe  yet  reside,  1879.'  Whitewoman's  Town  is 
marked  on  Dr.  Mitchell's  Map  of  1755  as  well  as  Gist's 
route,  from  his  notes  referred  to  in  the  sketch  of  the  Ohio 
Company.  The  town  is  also  marked  on  the  Map  of  Evans, 
1755,  and  appears  to  have  been  situated  about  opposite  the 
mouth  of  Killbuck  Creek,  in  the  present  County  of  Coshoc- 
ton, which  location  agrees  with  Gist's.  Whitewoman's 
Creek  is  also  called  the  Walkending — a  Delaware  name. 

January  16. — The  trail  led  in  a  southwesterly  direction, 
through  the  present  Coshocton  County,  passing  near  Dres- 
den, in  the  County  of  Muskingum  ;  thence  to  the  Licking 
Creek,  crossing  it  at  Clay  Lick  Station,  Hanover  Township, 
Licking  County,  on  the  Central  Ohio  Railroad,  six  miles 
east  of  Newark. 

January  17. — In  the  southern  part  of  Licking  County.  At 
the  time  of  Gist's  visit  this  swamp  was  of  great  extent,  part 
of  the  locality  is  known  as  the  Licking  Reservoir  of  the  Ohio 
Canal,  the  construction  of  which  commenced  here  in  1825.^ 
This  was  the  "  Great  Buffalo  Swamp"  of  Smith's  narrative, 
where  he  hunted  with  the  Indians  in  1755  or  6  and  where 
they  made  salt.' 

'  See  "  Narrative  of  Colonel  James  Smith,"  pp.  16,  32,  52,  107  and 
Appendi.x,  p.  172.  "  Bouquet's  Expedition,"  R.  Clarke  &  Co.,  pp.  63,  75, 
153.    Deposition  in  appendix  to  these  notes. 

'  Ohio  Canal  Doc,  1828,  p.  105.    Niles'  Register,  Vol.  XXVIII,  p.  22. 

'"Colonel  James  Smith's  Captivity,"  page  21.  See  also  "Historical 
Sketch  of  Licking  Township,"  by  Isaac  Smucker.  Pioneer  Paper,  No.  3, 
Licking  County  Pioneer  Association,  Newark,  Ohio,  1869. 


Il6  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

January  19. — Hockhockin,  now  Lancaster,  Fairfield  County, 
the  "Standing  Stone"  or  Ach-sin-sink  of  the  Delawares,  is  a 
rocky  eminence  near  the  town.  Visited  by  the  Missionary, 
the  Rev.  David  Jones,  in  1773.  He  mentions  in  his  Journal : 
"  February  9th,  at  the  Standing  Stone.  This  town  consists 
chiefly  of  Delaware  Indians.  It  is  situated  on  a  creek  called 
Hock-hock-in.'  Hack-hack  is  a  Delaware  word,  and  signifies 
a  gourd  with  a  neck;  also  applied  to  bottles.''  Hockhocking, 
from  the  shape  of  the  creek,'  resembling  that  of  a  bottle. 
John  Brickell's  account :  he  was  for  five  years  a  prisoner 
among  the  Delawares  in  Ohio.''  Marked  "  Hockhocking  or 
French  Margaret's,"  town  on  Evans'  Map  of  the  Middle 
Colonies,  1755.  Mitchell's  ditto,  Pownall's  of  1776,  ditto. 
French  Margaret  was  a  daughter  of  Madame  Montour.  It 
is  probable  she  resided  here  at  one  time. 

January  20. — Maguck.  In  the  Pickaway  plains,  between 
Scippo  Creek  and  the  Scioto  River,  in  Pickaway  County  and 
township,  three  and  one-half  miles  south  of  Circleville ; 
"the  small  rising  in  the  middle"  was  called  "Black  moun- 
tains "  by  the  natives.^  William  Trent  got  to  the  Maguck 
July  3,  1752."  "  The  Delawares  informed  me  the  lower  Shawa- 
nese  had  removed  off  the  river  (Ohio)  up  the  Sciota  to  a 
great  plain  called  Moguck."'     At  the  time  of  Gist's  visit  only 

'Journal,  p.  64,  original  edition,  Burlington,  New  Jersey,  1774.  Sabin's 
reprint.  New  York,  1865,  p.  86. 

^  Heckwelder,  "Historical  Account  of  the  Indian  Nations,"  p.  56. 
Narrative  of  ditto,  p.  144. 

■'  About  six  miles  above  Lancaster. 

'American  Pioneer,  Vol.  I,  p.  38-43.  Howe's  "History  of  Ohio,"  pp. 
161-600. 

'  Howe's  "  Ohio,"  p.  402. 

"Journal,  R.  Clarke  &  Co.,  1871. 

'  "Journal  of  Christopher  F.  Post,  November  28,  1758,"  Pennsylvania 
Archives,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  560. 


NOTES   TO   CHRISTOPHER   GIST'S   JOURNAL   OF    I75O-5I.       117 

a  portion  of  the  Delaware  tribes  had  removed  to  the  Ohio 
country  from  Pennsylvania. 

The  Shawanese  occupied  the  land  on  the  Scioto  in  the 
latter  part  of  the  preceding  century  and  also  the  country 
along  the  lower  Cumberland  River,  in  Kentucky,  first  called 
the  Shawnee  River ;  they  were  compelled  to  remove  in  their 
wars  with  the  Iroquois  or  Five  Nations.  Some  of  the  tribe 
went  south,  but  the  greater  part  emigrated  to  the  upper  Poto- 
mac and  to  Pennsylvania,  along  the  Susquehanna  and  its 
branches.'  "  You  Shawanese  look  back  toward  Ohio  the 
place  from  whence  you  came  and  return  thitherward  for  now 
we  shall  take  pity  on  the  English  and  let  them  have  all  this 
land."  "The  Delaware  Indians  sometime  ago  bid  us  Depart 
for  they  was  Dry  and  wanted  to  drink  ye  land  away,  where- 
upon we  told  them  Since  some  of  you  are  gone  to  Ohioh  we 
will  go  there  also,  we  hope  you  will  not  Drink  that  away 
too.'" 

They  gradually  removed  westward,  Delawares  and  Shawa- 
nese from  1728  to  1755,  first  to  the  Allegheny  and  Ohio  rivers 
and  thence  to  the  Muskingum  and  Scioto,  by  permission  how- 
ever of  the  Wyandots.' 

The  wild  rye  was  a  coarse,  natural  grass,  much  used  for  fod- 
der by  the  early  settlers.*     Scioto,  deer.     Where  deer  are 

'  Pennsylvania  Colonial  Record,  Vol.  IV,  p.  337.  Hazard's  "Pennsyl- 
vania," Vol.  V,  p.  115. 

2"  Shawnee  Chief's  Message  to  Governor  Gordon,  1732,"  Pennsylvania 
Archives,  Vol.  I,  p.  329.  Report  of  Committee,  November  22,  1755. 
Journals  of  Pennsylvania  Assembly,  p.  517. 

"  "  Treaty  of  the  United  States  with  the  Wyandots  at  Fort  Harmar,  in 
1789."  American  State  Papers,  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  I,  p.  7.  New  York 
Colonial  History,  Vol.  IX,  p.  1035.  Albert  Gallatin  in  "Transactions  of 
American  Antiquarian  Society,"  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  49,68,  69.  Shea's  "Dis- 
coveries in  the  Mississippi  Valley,"  1853,  p.  41,  note. 

*Ohio  Gazetteer,  1841,  p.  360. 


Il8  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

plenty.'  Deer,  Scaenoto,  Magua.^  Zeisberger  and  other 
Moravian  Missionaries.^  The  language  of  the  Hurons 
and  Wyandots  comes  near  the  Magua.^  John  Johnston 
observes  in  "Howe's  History  of  Ohio,"  p.  600,  that  "the 
Sci-on-to  River  was  named  by  the  Wyandots,  who  formerly 
resided  on  it ;  signification  unknown."  On  p.  599  of  the 
same  volume  he  gives  specimens  of  the  Wyandot  language  ; 
in  the  list  deer  is — Ough — Scanoto.^  In  the  Onondaga 
tongue  deer  is  Skan-o-do."  The  Wyandots  or  Hurons,  and 
Iroquois  or  Five  Nations,  were  of  the  same  original  stock. 

The  Rev.  David  Jones,  in  his  Journal  of  1772,  p.  4,  says : 
"The  name  which  the  Shawnese  give  Sciota  has  slipped  my 
memory,  but  it  signified  Hairy  River.  The  Indians  tell  us 
deer  were  so  plenty  when  they  came  to  drink,  the  stream 
would  be  thick  of  hairs.  The  name  Ona-Sciota,  mountains 
in  Southeastern  Kentucky,  on  Evans'  Map  of  1755  and 
Hutchins  of  1778,  doubtless  meant  mountains  where  deer 
are  plenty. 

January  24. — It  is  evident  from  the  text  of  the  Journal  that 
Gist  did  not  cross  to  the  west  side  of  the  Scioto,  where  he  states 
Harrickintom's  town  to  be  located,  and  such  is  the  conclusion 
of  Governor  Pownall  in  his  edition  of  Evans'  Map,  1776,  on 
which  Gist's  route  is  laid  down  and  this  town  placed  on  the 
east  side  of  Scioto.  On  Dr.  Mitchell's  Map  of  1755  the  same. 
On  Evans'  original  Map  of  1755  and  Hutchins'  of  1778  it  is 

'  "Lagard's  Dictionary  of  the  Huron  Language,"  Paris,  1633. 

2  Mohawk. 

<  Vocabulary  in  the  "  Bulletin  of  the  Pennsylvania  Historical  Society," 
Vol.  I,  p.  42- 

Md.,p.3i- 

^  Also  in  Transactions  American  Antiquarian  Society,  Vol.  I,  pp.  293- 
298. 

"  Schoolcraft,  Gallatin's  Vocabulary. 


NOTES    TO   CHRISTOPHER   GIST'S   JOURNAL   OF    17SO-5I.       I IQ 

placed  on  the  west  side.  It  seems  to  have  stood  a  little  below 
the  site  of  the  present  city  of  Chillicothe  and  nearly  opposite 
the  mouth  of  Paint  Creek. 

January  25. — Salt  Lick  Creek  empties  into  the  Scioto, 
on  the  east  side,  in  Jefferson  township,  Ross  County.  The 
"  Scioto  Salt  Works,"  the  first  and  for  several  years  the  only 
manufactory  of  salt  in  this  part  of  Ohio,  were  on  this  creek.' 
"This  river  (Scioto)  is  furnished  with  salt  on  an  eastern 
branch."  ' 

January  27. — This  town  stood  on  the  east  branch  of  the 
Scioto,  in  the  present  Clay  township,  Scioto  County.  Win- 
daughalah  was  a  great  war  chief  during  the  French  wars. 
His  name  implies  an  ambassador.  He  was  a  prominent 
counsellor  in  peace  times.  He  lived  at  Tuscarawas  in  1762, 
where  he  had  the  figure  of  a  water  lizard  tatooed  on  his  face 
above  the  chin  ;  he  was  then  named  Swe-gach-shasin.'  This 
chief  appeared  at  a  Conference,  held  at  Pittsburgh,  July  5, 
1759,  between  George  Croghan,  Deputy  of  Sir  Wm.  Johnston, 
Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs  in  North  America,  Colonel 
Hugh  Mercer,  Commander  of  the  Garrison  of  Fort  Pitt,  offi- 
cers, etc.,  and  the  Indian  chiefs  and  warriors  of  the  Six  Na- 
tions, Shawanese,  Delawares,  and  Wyandots.*  Also  at  a 
Conference  held  at  Lancaster,  Pennsylvania,  between  Gover- 
nor Hamilton,  the  Council  of  the  Province  and  the  chiefs  of 
the  Ohio  Delawares,  Shawanese,  Tuscarawas,  Ottawas  and 
Miamis,  and  the  Six  Nation  chiefs  and  others  from  the  North, 
in  August,  1762. 

At  Pittsburgh,  with  "  White  Eyes "  and  other  chiefs,  in 
June,  1774.^    He  was  present  at  the  Treaty  of  Fort  Mcintosh, 

'"American  Pioneer,"  Vol.  I,  p.  97. 
^  Evans,  Analysis  of  Map,  1755,  P-  3°- 
'  Heckwelder's  "  Indian  Nations,"  p.  198. 

*  Colonial  Records  of  Pennsylvania,  Vol.  VIII,  p.  383,  etc. 

*  Pennsylvania  Archives,  Vol.  IV,  p.  531. 


120  CHRISTOPHER    GISTS   JOURNALS. 

on  the  Ohio,  where  Beaver,  Pennsylvania,  now  stands,  in 
January,  1785,  and  then  with  other  chiefs,  representing  the 
Delawares  and  Wyandots,  executed  a  deed  to  the  State  of 
Pennsylvania  for  the  remainder  of  their  lands  within  that 
State.  Being  the  oldest,  Chief  Windaughalah,  or  the  "  Coun- 
cil Don,"  signed  first.'  He  also  appeared  at  the  Treaty  held 
at  Fort  Finney,  at  the  mouth  of  the  great  Miami,  in  January, 
1786,  between  the  United  States  and  the  Shawanese.  Win- 
daughalah being  active  in  persuading  that  tribe  to  make 
terms  with  the  Government.^  At  this  time  this  distinguished 
chief  must  have  been  quite  old.  The  famous  head  chief 
and  warrior  of  the  Delawares,  Buckongahelas,  was  his  son. 

January  29. — The  lower  Shawanese  Town  was  situated 
where  the  present  town  of  Alexandria,  opposite  Portsmouth, 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Scioto,  now  stands,  and  also  on  the  south 
shore  of  the  Ohio  River,  directly  opposite,''  to  which  the 
Shawanese  on  the  north  side  were  compelled  to  remove,  within 
a  few  years  after  Gist's  visit,  in  consequence  of  a  great  flood 
in  the  Scioto  destroying  the  town  at  its  mouth.  George 
Croghan  was  there  at  the  time ;  the  water  was  near  fifty  feet 
above  the  ordinary  level.''  This  town  was  a  noted  place  for 
Indian  trade.' 

In  the  original  MS.  account  of  "losses  occasioned  by  the 
French  and  Indians,  driving  the  English  Traders  off  the 
Ohio,"  in  1754,  made  by  George  Croghan,  at  Carlisle,  April 
24,  1756,  appears  this  item  of  property  seized  belonging 
to  William  Trent,  George  Croghan,  Robert  Callender  and 
Michael  Teaff,  Traders  in  Company : 

'See  "Minutes  of  the  Pennsylvania  Assembly,  1785,"  p.  327. 
^Craig's  "Olden  Time,"  Vol.  II,  p.  455,  etc. 
■'  In  the  present  Green  County,  Kentucky. 

*  Croghan's  Journal,  in  Appendix  to  "  Butler's  History  of  Kentucky," 
Second  Appendix,  p.  462. 
*"  Evans'  Analysis  of  Map  of  17SS,"  P-  30. 


NOTES   TO   CHRISTOPHER   GISTS   JOURNAL   OF    175O-5I.       121 

"  One  large  store  House  on  the  Ohio  opposite  to  the  mouth 
of  the  River  Scioto  where  the  Shawanese  had  built  their  new 
Town  called  the  Lower  Shawanese  Town,  which  House  we 
learn  by  the  Indians  is  now  in  the  possession  of  a  French 
Trader  ;^200." 

The  Shawanese  removed  to  the  plains  of  Scioto  in  1758 
and  sent  for  those  of  their  tribe,  at  Logstown,  to  join  them.' 
On  Hutchins'  large  Map  of  1778  the  town  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Scioto  is  marked  "Old  Lower  Shawnee  Town,"  and  the 
place  to  which  they  removed  is  laid  down  "  Lower  Shawnee 
Town,"  situated  on  both  sides  of  the  Scioto,  on  the  "  Plains." 
There  it  became  known  as  Upper  Chillicothe,  or  Old  Chilli- 
cothe  and  "  Pluggy's  Town,"  four  miles  below  Circleville,  on 
the  west  side  of  the  river. ^  Some  of  the  log  cabins  and 
stone  chimneys  of  the  town,  on  the  Kentucky  side  of  the 
Ohio,  were  standing  in  June,  1773,  when  Captain  BuUit  and 
the  McAfee  Company  passed  down  the  Ohio.'  Dr.  Davidson 
mentions  it  as  a  French  village.'  Traces  of  this  town  were 
visible  in  1820.^ 

"  We  are  glad  that  the  Shawanese  who  were  our  enemies 
did  make  their  application  to  you  last  fall,  for  protection  and 
that  you  sent  them  hither  to  endeavour  to  make  peace  with 


'  "Post's  Journal."  Dr.  Franklin's  Tract,  "The  Walpole  Grant;  or, 
Ohio  Settlement,  1772,"  original  edition,  p.  22. 

2  Pownall's  Map,  1776.  Evans' ditto,  1755.  Dr.  Mitchell's  ditto.  Note  in 
Appendix  to  Colonel  Smith's  Narrative. 

'  Note  on  p.  53,  Davidson's  "  History  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in 
Kentucky." 

*  "  Evans'  Analysis  of  Map  of  1755,"  p.  30. 

^  See  Collins'  "History  of  Kentucky,  1874."  Palmer's  "Travels  in  the 
United  States  and  Canada,  1817,"  p.  65. 

"  "  Answer  of  the  Five  Nations  to  Governor  Fletcher,  at  Albany,  July 
4,  1693."     New  York  Colonial  History,  Vol.  IV,  p.  42. 

9 


122  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

January  30. — The  two  prisoners  were  Maurice  Turner  and 
Ralph  Kilgore,  in  the  employ  of  John  Frazer,  a  trader,  living 
at  the  old  Indian  town  of  Venango,  on  the  Allegheny  River." 
They  were  captured  about  twenty-five  miles  from  the  Miami 
Town,  in  May,  1750,  by  seven  Indians  in  the  French  interest, 
who  took  them  to  Detroit,  which  "  then  had  one  hundred 
and  fifty  houses,  stockaded  all  around."  They  were  set  to 
work  for  a  farmer  in  the  neighborhood,  for  three  months, 
when  the  commander  of  the  Fort  being  superseded,  by  Cele- 
ron, he  took  them  with  him  to  Niagara.  While  there  they  saw 
Jean  Coeur  with  the  goods  intended  for  Ohio.  On  their  way 
to  Quebec  they  escaped  from  the  guard  in  the  night,  between 
Niagara  and  Oswego,  reached  the  English  fort  at  the  latter 
place  and  thence  got  to  Sir  William  Johnston's  "  in  a  miserable 
condition,"  and  thence  by  way  of  New  York  to  Philadelphia.^ 
In  the  original  MS.  deposition  of  Turner,'  taken  at  Phila- 
delphia, June  28,  1756,  he  states  that  "he  and  Kilgore  were 
taken  by  seven  French  Indians  who  robbed  him  of  fifty 
Pounds  worth  of  Wampum  and  Silver  work,"-  and  Turner 
was  again  captured  and  robbed,  in  April,  1753,  below  the  Falls 
of  the  Ohio  ;  he  escaped,  with  a  French  deserter,  after  being 
taken  to  Logstown.* 

February  11. — Marriage  and  cohabitation  with  women 
amongst  the  savage  tribes  throughout  the  world  present  many 
similar  features,  curious,  and  often  beastly,  customs.  A  tem- 
porary interchange  of  wives  is  not  uncommon  among  the 

'  "  Pennsylvania  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V,  p.  659,  660. 

'  Examination  of  Turner  and  Kilgore,  by  the  Governor  and  Council, 
October,  1750.  "  Pennsylvania  Colonial  Records,"  Vol,  V,  p.  482.  Letter 
of  Sir  William  Johnston  to  Governor  Clinton,  id.,  p.  481,  and  also  in  "  New 
York  Colonial  History,''  Vol.  VI,  p.  599. 

*  Among  Colonel  F.  Etting's  "^Traders'  Papers." 

*  MS.  deposition. 


NOTES    TO    CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNAL   OF    1750-51.       123 

Indians  of  the  far  North.'  A  similar  dance,  etc.,  by  a  small 
party  of  Iroquois  near  Fort  Cumberland,  in  1755,  is  described 
in  Sargent's  "  History  of  Braddock's  Expedition,"  p.  376.  It 
is  stated  °  that  in  the  Iroquois  Canton  of  Tsonnontonon '  a 
plurality  of  husbands  prevails. 

February  12  to  17. — To  make  the  courses  and  distances 
stated  in  the  Journal  reconcilable,  Gist  passed  through  the 
present  counties  of  Scioto,  Adams,  Highland,  Fayette,  Madi- 
son, Clarke  and  Champaign  to  West  Liberty,  in  the  northern 
part  of  Logan  County,  about  140  miles  from  the  mouth  of  the 
Scioto  ;  there  he  crossed  the  Mad  River,*  thence  southwest  to 
the  Twigtwee  town — about  twenty-five  miles  as  he  gives  it. 
His  object  being  to  examine  the  country  occasioned  his  not 
taking  a  more  direct  course,  which  would  have  been  forty  miles 
less.  The  Twigtwees,  or  Pickawillamy  Town,  stood  on  the 
west  bank  of  the  Great  Miami,  at  the  mouth  of  Laramie's 
Creek,  on  the  south  side,  in  the  present  county  of  Miami, 
about  two  and  a  half  miles  north  of  the  present  town  of  Piqua.* 
Howe  erroneously  places  it  at  the  point  where  Laramie's  store, 
or  Fort  Laramie,  afterwards  stood,  fourteen  miles  farther 
north.  By  the  French  accounts  the  Miamis,  in  171 8,  had  a 
thousand  warriors."  In  1736  about  six  hundred  fighting  men.' 
At  the  Treaty  of  Greenville,  in  1795,  the  Miamis  claimed  to 
have  had  undisputed  occupation  from  time  immemorial  of  all 

'  Mackenzie's  Voyages. 

''  Jeffry's  "  History  of  the  French  Dominions  in  America,"  London, 
1750,  p.  71. 

•''  Senecas. 

*  Supposed  by  him  to  be  the  Little  Miami,  which  heads  about  forty 
miles  farther  south. 

'  Evans'  and  Mitchell's  Maps,  1755.     Pownall's,  1776.    Hutchins',  1778. 
«  Memoir  in  the  "Colonial  History  of  New  York,"  Vol.  IX,  p.  891. 
'jid.,  p.  1057. 


124  CHRISTOPHER   GIST'S   JOURNALS. 

the  country  between  the  Scioto  and  the  Wabash  and  from 
Detroit  to  Chicago.' 

In  the  Fall  of  1747  the  Miamis  seized  the  French  Fort 
Miami,  plundered  and  partly  burned  it.'  In  July,  1748,  the 
chiefs  and  deputies  from  the  Miamis  held  their  first  Confer- 
ence and  Treaty  with  Pennsylvania  at  Lancaster.  A  number 
of  the  Six  Nations,  Delawares,  Shawanese  and  chiefs  of  other 
tribes  were  present.  The  Miamis  then  claimed  to  have,  with 
their  allies,  twenty  towns  and  one  thousand  warriors.'  Dis- 
patches received  from  Governor  Vaudreuil  by  the  French 
Ministry  state  that  the  English  have  succeeded  in  carrying 
a  revolt  among  the  Miami  tribes  settled  on  the  Rock  River* 
and  the  Wabash.' 

February  18. — This  fort  was  an  Indian  fortification,  not  a 
traders' ;  they,  however,  used  it  for  their  protection,  as  many 
as  fifty  of  them  sometimes  lodging  within  it."  Pattin  and 
near  sixty  other  traders  lodged  in  "cabins"  within  a  fort 
belonging  to  the  Miamis,  whose  chief's  name  was  La  Dem- 
oiselle. It  is  probable  the  cabins  and  the  Long  or  Council 
House  were  stockaded,  making  a  very  defensible  structure. 
It  was  called  La  Demoiselle  Fort  in  the  dispatches  of  the 
Marquis  de  Longuere  to  the  Minister.'  "  You  told  us  you 
discovered  on  the  Great  Miami  traces  of  an  old  Fort.  It  was 
not  a  French  Fort,  Brother,  it  was  a  Fort  built  by  me."  ' 

'  Speech  of  Little  Turtle,  American  State  Papers,  Vol.  I,  p.  570. 

*  "  New  York  Colonial  History,"  Vol.  X,  p.  140. 

8 "  Pennsylvania  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V,  pp.  307-9,  September  18, 
1750. 

*  Big  Miami. 

^  Paris  Document,  "  New  York  Colonial  History,"  Vol.  X,  p.  220. 

*  French  Memorial,  Paris  edition,  1756,  p.  97.  London  edition,  1758,  p. 
103. 

' "  New  York  Colonial  History,"  Vol.  X,  p.  245. 
8  That  is,  "  By  my  Tribe  or  Nation." 


I    NOTES   TO    CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNAL   OF    175O-51.       I25 

Reply  of  the  Miami  chief,  Little  Turtle,  to  General  Wayne, 
at  the  Treaty  of  Greenville,  August,  1795.'  The  ruins  of  this 
fort  were  observed  by  the  army  under  General  Harmar,  which 
crossed  the  Miami  here  on  October  10,  1790.'-  At  the  Treaty 
at  Fort  Harmar,  in  1789,  this  point  is  referred  to  as  "at  the 
mouth  of  the  branch  of  the  Big  Miami,"  where  the  fort  stood 
which  was  taken  by  the  French  in  1752/ 

February  22. — The  Treaty  referred  to  in  the  biographical 
sketch  of  George  Croghan  was  dated  as  executed  this  day.* 

February  24. — This  fort  was  attacked  and  captured  by  a 
force  of  about  two  hundred  and  forty  Indians,  led  by  two 
Frenchmen,  June  22,  1752.  The  old  King,  called  Brittain, 
was  taken,  killed  and  eaten,  near  the  fort,  in  the  presence  of 
his  tribe.  In  the  attack  one  white  man  and  fourteen  Indians 
were  killed,  and  five  whites  were  taken  prisoners.*  Thomas 
Burney  and  Andrew  McBryar,  traders,  were  in  the  fort  at  the 
time  of  the  attack,  but  escaped  in  the  night.  The  other  whites 
were  captured.  Burney  was  afterward  killed  at  Braddock's 
defeat,  July  9,  1755,  and  McBryar  taken  prisoner.* 

"  The  Indians  are  not  habitual  Cannibals ;"  after  a  victory, 
however,  it  often  happens  that  the  bodies  of  their  enemies  are 
consumed  at  a  formal  feast.  A  superstitious  rite  to  incite 
them  to  warlike  deeds.'     The  British  Ministry  made  much  of 

'  American  State  Papers,  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  I,  p.  576. 

2  Letter  of  General  Harmar  to  the  Secretary  of  War,  Nov.  23,  1790. 

'  American  State  Papers,  Vol.  I. 

*  See  "  Pennsylvania  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V,  p.  524,  and  see  post 
March  i. 

'  Thomas  Burney's  Account  and  Message  from  the  Twigtwees  to  Gov- 
ernor Hamilton,  August,  1752.  Colonial  Records,  Vol.  V,  p.  599.  Assembly 
Journals  of  Pennsylvania,  p.  234. 

*  "  MS.  Accounts  of  George  Croghan  &  Co.,  1750,"  in  which  it  is  stated 
that  they  lost  goods,  in  the  hands  of  Burney  and  McBryar  at  the  taking 
of  the  Twigtwees  Town,  to  the  value  of  ^331,  155. 

'  Parkman's  "  Pontiac,"  Vol.  I,  second  edition,  p.  234-257. 


126  CHRISTOPHER   GISx's  JOURNALS. 

this  affair  in  all  of  their  statements  respecting  the  origin  of 
the  war  of  1754.  On  Dr.  Mitchell's  official  Map  of  1755,  Pick- 
waylinees  is  described  as  an  "  English  Fort,  established  in 
1748." '  It  is  obvious,  as  the  "  French  Royal  Geographer  "  ob- 
served, that  the  French  established  in  the  neigborhood* 
would  not  have  permitted  the  erection  of  an  English  post 
here.'  The  hostile  force  did  not  keep  possession  of  the  fort. 
William  Trent  was  in  it  a  few  days  afterwards.*  The  Miamis 
afterwards  returned  to  the  French  alliance ;  and  it  is  stated 
their  fort  was  again  attacked,  although  unsuccessfully,  by  the 
Shawanese,  Delawares  and  other  Indians,  in  the  English  in- 
terest, assisted  by  a  few  traders.  Soon  afterwards  the  Miamis 
left  the  Big  Miami,  retiring  to  the  Wabash  and  the  Maumee. 
The  Shawanese  took  their  place,  since  known  as  Upper 
Piqua." 

February  2$. — The  Wawaughtanneys,  or  as  the  French  cal- 
led them,  Ouatemeous — the  most  ancient  of  the  Miami  tribes. 

February  26 — Twigtwees — as  the  Six  Nations  called  the 
Miamis,  the  French  called  them  Ouitaneous." 

February  27. — The  French  fort,  Miami ;  about  forty-five 
miles  from  Pickwaylinees  and  where  the  City  of  Fort  Wayne, 
Indiana,  now  stands.' 

March  2. — This  point  on  "Mad  Creek"  is  about  seven 
miles  west  of   Springfield,  in   Bethlehem   township,  Clarke 

'  See  also  "Contest  in  America,"  by  an  impartial  hand,  1757,  pp.  221- 
237.     Evans'  Map,  1755  ;  Hutchins',  1778. 

"  At  Fort  Miami,  etc. 

'  Remarques  sur  la  Carte  de  TAmerique,  Paris,  1755,  p.  120. 

■*  Journal,  Logstown  to  Pickawillamy,  1752.     Clarke  &  Co.,  187 1. 

s  Howe's  Ohio,  Miami  County,  p.  363. 

"  Shea's  "  Charlevoix,  American  Antiquarian  Collection,"  p.  63,  Vol.  II. 

'  "French  Memoire,"  1756,  p-  98;  English  edition,  p.  103.  See  also 
Dillon's  "  History  of  Indiana."  Brice's  ditto  of  Fort  Wayne.  Hutchins' 
Map,  1778.    Arrowsmith's,  ditto,  1796. 


NOTES    TO   CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNAL   OF    175O-5I.       127 

County,  at  the  junction  of  the  old  road  from  Laramie's  store, 
with  the  Springfield  and  Dayton  road,  or  turnpike,  where  the 
village  of  West  Boston  stood,  five  miles  west  of  Springfield. 
Piqua,  a  town  famous  in  Shawanese  Indian  annals,  was  built 
here,  subsequently.  It  was  destroyed  by  the  army  under 
George  Rogers  Clarke,  in  1780.  Tecumseh  was  born  here 
about  1768."  The  traders  captured  here,  were  those  before 
mentioned,  January  30,  Turner  and  Kilgore. 

March  3-8. — It  seems  probable  Gist  did  not  leave  the 
valley  of  the  little  Miami  until  in  the  present  County  of 
Warren,  thence  Northeast  to  the  mouth  of  Scioto.  '  The 
Mingoes,  a  name  generally  applied  to  Indians  of  the  Iroquois 
tribes  or  Six  Nations.  The  Menguaes,  or  Mengwe,  were,  how- 
ever, a  distinct  but  kindred  tribe  of  the  Iroquois,  with  whom 
they  were  continually  at  war,  for  over  a  century,  until  their 
final  subjugation  in  1672-5,  when  their  remnant,  known  as 
Conestogas,  was  incorporated  with  their  conquerors."  Their 
country  extended  between  the  lower  Susquehanna  and  the 
Delaware.  They  were  known  by  the  different  names  of  Min- 
guaes,  Susquehannas,  Andastes  and  Gandastogues  or  Cones- 
togas.'  Dr.  O'Callaghan,  editor  of  the  "New  York  Colonial 
History,"  erroneously  restricts  the  name  "Mingo"  to  the 
"  Iroquois  of  the  Ohio."  Dr.  Shea  also,  in  note  to  "  Private 
Diaries  of  Washington;  Tour  of  the  Ohio,"  p.  224,  N.  Y.  i860: 
"  The  Conestogas  were  formerly  a  part  of  the  Five  Nations, 
called  Mingoes,  and  speak  the  same  language  to  this  day."* 

'  According  to  Drake's  "  Life  of  Tecumseli." 

^  Speecli  of  Cannesatego  at  the  treaty  of  Lancaster,  1744.  "  Colonial 
Records  of  Pennsylvania,"  Vol.  IV,  p.  708,  etc.  Colden's  "  History  of  the 
Five  Nations,"  third  edition,  1755,  Vol.  IL 

'  "The  Fall  of  the  Susquehannocks,"  by  S.  F.  Streeter ;  "Historical 
Magazine,"  Vol.  I,  1857,  p.  65.     Alsop's  "  Maryland,"  1666. 

'  "Colonial  Records  of  Pennsylvania,"  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  101-204.  Pro- 
ceedings of  Provincial  Council,  at  Philadelphia,  October  3,  1722 ;  and  in 
Evans'  "Geographical  Essays,"  an  analysis  of  Map,  1755,  p.  11.    Note. 


128  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's    JOURNALS. 

"The  Confederates,  otherwise  called  Iroquois,  Five  Nations, 
Six  Nations,  Minguaes  and  Mingoes."  As  Dr.  Shea  correctly 
observes,'  "Gallatin  erroneously  placed  them,  (the  Andastes 
or  Mingues),  on  the  head  waters  of  the  Ohio,  and  having  been 
followed  by  Bancroft  has  misled  many."  - 

March  12. — Crossed  the  Ohio  to  the  south  shore,  in  the 
present  County  of  Greenup,  Kentucky,  thence  to  a  point 
near  the  present  town  of  Vanceburgh. 

March  13. — Hugh  Crawford's  name  first  appears  in  the 
list  of  Indian  traders  licensed  in  1747-8.'  He  was  trading 
among  the  Miamis  in  the  winter  of  1749-50.  They  sent  a 
message  by  him  to  the  Governor  of  Pennsylvania.*  In  1755 
he  made  the  first  settlement,  or  improvement  at  the  "  Stand- 
ing Stone,"  now  the  town  of  Huntingdon,  Pennsylvania.' 
Crawford's  House  is  marked  at  the  mouth  of  Standing  Stone 
Creek,  west  side,  on  Scull's  Map  of  Pennsylvania,  1759.''  He 
was  an  Ensign  in  the  ist  Battalion,  ist  Pennsylvania  Reg- 
iment, 1757.'  Served  in  General  Forbes'  campaign,  1758. 
In    March,  1759,  he  was   in  command   of  a  detachment   of 

'  "Historical  Magazine,"  for  1857,  Vol.  II,  p.  294. 

''  See  "History  of  United  States,"  Vol.  Ill,  p.  245,  and  Map;  also 
"Transactionsof  American  Antiquarian  Society,"  Vol.  II,p.  73,  and  Map. 
See  also  "  Discoveries  in  New  Netherlands,"  and  Map.  "  Report  of  Cap- 
tain Hendrickson,"  i6i6.  "  Holland  Documents ;  New  York  Colonial 
History,"  Vol.  I,  p.  13.  Vocabulary  of  the  Minguae's  Language,  and  note 
in  Campanius'  "History  of  New  Sweden,"  original  edition,  Stockholm, 
1702,  p.  182,  etc.;  Du  Ponceus'  translation,  Philadelphia,  1834,  p.  148. 
"Captain  John  Smith's  Explorations,"  1608,  and  Map,  in  his  "General 
History  of  Virginia,"  1629,  Richmond  edition,  1819,  p.  182,  etc.,  of  Vol  I. 
Map  of  Virginia,  De  Laet,  1640. 

'  "Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Vol.  II,  p.  14. 

*  "  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V,  p.  437. 

^  Lytle's  "  History  of  Huntingdon  County,"  p.  71. 

^  See  also  Judge  Huston's  "  Land  Titles  of  Pennsylvania,"  p.  338. 

"  Pennsylvania  Archives,  Vol.  II,  p.  336. 


NOTES   TO   CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNAL   OF    I75O-51.       129 

troops  at  the  "Breastworks,"  on  the  branch  of  Stony  Creek, 
now  known  as  "  Breastworks  Run,"  near  Stoyestown,  Somer- 
set County,  Pennsylvania.'  At  the  outbreak  of  the  Pontiac 
War,  in  the  Spring  of  1763,  he  and  a  boy  were  captured  by 
the  Indians  at  Cedar  Point,  Maumee  Bay,  Lake  Erie.  Six 
men  of  the  party  were  killed.''  He  was  interpreter  and 
conductor  of  the  Indians  in  running  the  western  part  of 
Mason  and  Dixon's  line,  in  1767.^  For  his  services  in  that 
business  he  received  a  "grant  of  preference"  for  five  hun- 
dred acres  of  land,  in  January,  1768,  from  Governor  Penn. 
It  was  one  of  the  "Gist  Tracts,"  in  the  present  Fayette 
County.*  Crawford  died  in  1770.  Salt  Lick  or  Spring,  since 
known  as  the  Big  Bone  Lick,  in  Boone  County,  Kentucky, 
about  one  and  one-half  miles  from  the  Ohio  River,  at  the 
mouth  of  the  creek,  twenty-five  miles  below  the  great  Miami 
and  eighty-six  miles  above  Louisville.  So  called  from  the 
bones  of  the  Mastodon,  or  Mammoth,  found  there,  first  by 
the  French,  in  1729.°  George  Croghan  visited  the  Lick  in 
1765.'  He  removed  some  of  the  bones  and  sent  them  to 
Peter  Collinson  in  London.'  See  also  letter  from  Dr.  VVm. 
Clarke,  of  Cincinnati,  to  Thomas  Jefferson,  in  1806,  in  refer- 

'  MS.  letter,  March,  1759,  to  Colonel  Bouquet,  from  Hugh  Crawford, 
respecting  the  health  of  his  men.   "  Bouquet  Papers." 

'  Letter  from  Thomas  Calhoon,  at  Tuscarawas,  May  28,  1763. 

'  Manuscript  Journal  of  Mason  and  Dixon,  Library  Pennsylvania  His- 
torical Society.  "History  of  Mason  and  Dixon's  Line,"  by  James  Veech, 
1857,  p.  42- 

♦  Note  to  p.  96  of  "Monongahela  of  Old,"  James  Veech. 

'  Bellin's  Map  of  1754,  in  Charlevoix's  "History  of  New  France,"  Vol. 
I,  and  Bellin's  "  Remarques  sur  la  Carte  de  I'Am^rique,"  1755,  p.  121 
note. 

"  Journal  in  Butler's  "History  of  Kentucky,"  second  edition,  Appendix. 

'  "  Description  of  the  Mastodon,  or  Mammoth,  of  Ohio,"  pamphlet  by 
A.  C.  Bown,  M.D.,  Amsterdam,  1809. 


130  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

ence  to  his  explorations  here.  He  states  that  he  had  at  one 
time  five  tons  of  the  bones.'  Renewed  and  deep  explorations 
in  1876  brought  to  the  surface  quantities  of  these  remains. 

March  14.— About  the  site  of  Washington,  Mason  County, 
four  miles  south  of  Maysville. 

March  15.— Probably  the  Licking  River  at  the  Lower  Blue 
Licks.  He  had  travelled  thus  far  by  an  old  trail  from  the 
Ohio. 

March  16.— Through  the  present  counties  of  Hamilton, 
Nicholas,  Scott,  and  Franklin,  to  the  Kentucky  River,  or  near 
it,  above  Frankfort. 

March  18.— The  Lower  Salt  Lick,  now  known  as  Salt 
River.  It  is  possible  Gist  reached  it  at  the  Licks,  since  called 
Bullit's  Licks,  three  miles  from  the  river,  in  BuUit  County, 
near  Shepherdville,  and  about  eighteen  miles  southeast  from 
Louisville,  at  the  Falls.  The  courses  he  gives  in  the  Journal 
would  take  him  to  this  point,  although  his  distances  do  not. 
He  must  also  have  misunderstood  Smith,  as  Salt  River  is 
below  and  not  above  the  Falls.  It  seems  more  probable  that 
the  farthest  point  he  reached  westward  was  the  branch  of  Salt 
River,  since  known  as  Floyd's  Fork ;  there  was  a  Salt  Lick 
on  it  in  early  times,  where  Floydsburgh,  in  Oldham  County, 
now  stands.'^  The  ridge  of  mountains  he  ascended  is  a  low 
range  or  elevation,  extending  from  Oldham  eastward  to  the 
Kentucky  River. 

March  19. — The  creeks  he  crossed  are  now  named  Bullskin, 
Gist's,  and  other  branches  of  Brashear's  Creek,  in  Shelby 
County;  their  course  is  southwest.  He  reached  "the  little 
Cuttawa,"  or  Kentucky  River,  about  where  the  city  of  Frank- 
fort now  stands,  crossed  at  the  island  above,  thence  southeast 

'  Appendix  to    Cramer's  "Navigator,"    Pittsburgh,  1814.    Cuming's 
"Western  Tour  in  1807-9."     Pittsburgh,  1810,  p.  409. 
2  See  Munsell's  State  Map  of  Kentucky,  1816. 


NOTES    TO    CHRISTOPHER    GISTS    JOURNAL    OF    I75O-5I.       I3I 

through  the  present  counties  of  Woodford  and  Fayette  to  the 
border  of  Clark.  The  Kentucky  River  is  here  called  the 
"  Little  Cuttawa,"'  and  such  appears  to  be  the  name  by 
which  it  was  first  known,  from  the  fact  that  the  Indian  trail 
or  war-path  to  the  Country  of  the  Catawbas,  in  the  Carolinas, 
led  from  the  lower  Shawnee  town,  opposite  the  mouth  of  the 
Scioto,  southward  to  the  Warrior  Branch,  or  North  Fork,  of 
the  Kentucky  River,  thence  up  the  river  to  the  "war  gap" 
in  the  mountain  ridge,*  thence  southwest  to  the  Shawnee  or 
Cumberland  River,  thence  south  to  the  Cumberland  Gap, 
thence  to  and  by  way  of  the  French  Broad  River  to  the 
Catawba  country.'  Kentucky  or  Kentuckgin,  Kantuchy, 
Kentucke,  from  Ken-ta-ke,  a  Mohawk''  word  signifying 
"  among  the  meadows,"  °  so  applied  with  the  usual  correct- 
ness of  descriptive  names  by  the  Indians  to  the  country 
through  which  the  Kentucky  River  flows — the  woodland 
meadows  being  its  characteristic  feature."  John  Johnston, 
who  was  for  many  years  Agent  for  Indian  Affairs  in  Ohio, 
states  that  "  Kentucky  is  a  Shawnee  word,  meaning,  at  the 
head  of  a  river."'  In  the  Shawnee  language  Meadows  is 
M'shish-kee-we-kut-uk-ah.*  In  Evans'  "Analysis  of  Map  of 
I7S5>"  P-  29,  this  river  is  described  as  "having high  clay  banks, 

'  Catawba. 

*  In  Clay  and  Perry  counties. 

'  See  Lewis  Evans"  Map,  1755.  Pownall's,  1776.  Hutchins',  1778.  Fil- 
son's  Map  of  Kentucky,  1784.     Munsell's  State  Map  of  ditto,  1816. 

■*  Iroquois  or  Six  Nations. 

^  List  of  names  of  places  given  to  Dr.  Hough,  by  an  intelligent  Indian 
of  the  Cahnawagas,  or  French  Mohawks,  of  the  tribe  near  Montreal. 
Hough's  "  History  of  St.  Lawrence  County,"  New  York,  1858. 

"  In  a  Mohawk  Vocabulary,  in  the  "American  Aboriginal  Archives," 
Vol.  II,  p.  486,  Meadows  is  Ye-e-an-ty-yk-ta. 

'  "  Archives  Americana,"  Vol.  I,  p.  279.  Howe's  "  Historical  Collection 
of  Ohio,"  p.  600. 

*  Vocabulary  in  Schoolcraft's  "American  Aboriginal  Archives,"  Vol. 
II,  p.  474. 


132  CHRISTOPHER    GIST  S    JOURNALS. 

abounds  in  Cane  and  Buffaloes  and  large  Salt  Springs,  its 
navigation   interrupted  with  some  shoals,  but  passable  with 
Canoes  to  the  Gap  where  the  war  path  goes  through  the  Oua- 
siota  mountains,"  which   Evans    deems  "  a  very   important 
pass."      Evans'    information     respecting    the    country    was 
obtained    from  Alexander    Maginty  and  Alexander  Lowry, 
well-known  and  intelligent  traders  from  Pennsylvania.'    The 
name  Kentucky  first  appears  in  the  Deposition  of  Alexander 
Maginty,  taken  at   Philadelphia,  before  William  Allen,  Chief 
Justice  of  Pennsylvania,  on  the  I2th  of  October,  1753,  wherein 
he  states  that  on  the  preceding  i6th  of  January,  when  return- 
ing with  six  other  traders  from  the  Cuttawas,  in  Carolina, 
they  were  attacked  and  taken  prisoners  by  seventy  Cahna- 
wagas,  or  French   Praying  Indians,  from  the  river  St.  Law- 
rence, at  a  place  about  twenty-five  miles  from  the  Blue  Lick 
town  and  on  the  south  bank  of  the  Cantucky  River,  which 
empties  itself  into  the  Allegheny  River,  about  two  hundred 
miles  below  the  lower  Shawnee  Town.''    The  captives  were 
beaten  and  plundered  of  their  goods,  taken  to  Fort  Miami, 
thence  to  Detroit,  Niagara  and  Montreal.    Two  of  their  num- 
ber were  sent  to  France ;  one  escaped.   Maginty,  with  the  three 
remaining  prisoners,  were  redeemed  by  Colonel  Schuyler  and 
the  other  commissioners  of  Indian  affairs,  at  Albany,  paying 
the  Indians  about  seventy-two  pounds.     In   Maginty's  peti- 
tion to  the  Pennsylvania  Assembly  for  relief,  the  river  is  called 
"  Kantucqui,"  a  western  branch  of  the  Ohio."     In  the  Treaty 
of  Greenville,  1795,  Article  III,  it  is  mentioned  as  theCuttawa 
or  Kentucky  River;  also  on    Hutchins'    Map,  1778,  and   in 
Morse's  Gazetteer  of  North  America,  1798,  Kentucky  River  "is 

'  Analysis,  p.  10. 

-  "  Colonial  Records  of  Pennsylvania,"  Vol.  V,  pp.  627,663.  New  York 
Mercury,  August  19,  1754. 

•'  Assembly  Journal  of  Votes  and  Proceedings  for  1753,  October  16, 
p.  272. 


NOTES   TO   CHRISTOPHER   GIST'S   JOURNAL   OF    I7SO-5I.       I33 

sometimes  called  Cuttawa,"  p.  260.  In  the  Walpole  Grant  of 
Vandalia,  in  1773,  it  is  mentioned  as  the  "  Louisa  Catawba,  or 
Cuttawa."'  By  the  "  Great  Cuttawa  River"  Gist  probably 
means  the  Cherokee  River,  now  the  Tennessee.  Hendrick 
Apamans,  a  Mohican  chief,  speaks  of  the  "  Cherokees  or  Kut- 
toohwoh"  in  his  interesting  "  Narrative,"  1794,  Vol.  II,  part  i, 
p.  128.  Memoirsof  the  Pennsylvania  Historical  Society,  1827. 
On  the  map,  in  the  Tract  attributed  to  General  Oglethorpe, 
London,  1733,  the  Tennessee  River  is  marked  "  Cussetaolias 
Hochelepe"  River.  George  Croghan,  in  his  Journal,  on  May 
31,  1765,  mentions,  "passed  the  mouth  of  the  river  Kentucky 
or  Holsters  River,"  "A  fine  level  country;"  so  Daniel  Boone 
described  it.     The  beautiful  level  of  Kentucky.' 

March  20. — This  mountain  is  the  low  ridge  in  Clarke 
County. 

March  21. — To  the  Kentucky  River,  near  the  mouth  of  Red 
River,  between  Clarke,  Estill  and  Madison  Counties.  The 
"  shining  stones  "  doubtless  were  iron  ores,  with  a  little  sul- 
phur, abundant  here.'  This  was  the  point  reached  by  Daniel 
Boone  on  his  first  visit  to  Kentucky,  in  1769,  eighteen  years 
after  Gist.* 

March  24. — Along  the  North  Fork  of  the  Kentucky  River, 
in  the  present  counties  of  Lee,  Perry  and  Letcher,  coal  abun- 
dant.' 

April  I. — Through  the  Pound  Gap,  or  Stony  Gap,  as  some  call 
it,  about  twelve  miles  southeast  of  Whitesburgh,  in  Letcher 

'  MS.  and  "  Plain  Facts,"  1781,  p.  156.  Butler's  "  History  of  Kentucky," 
second  edition,  pp.  24,  504.  Hall's  "  Sketches  of  the  West,"  Vol.  I,  p.  251, 
and  Introductory  Chapter  to  this  volume,  part  relative  to  Dr.  Thomas 
Walker's  explorations. 

2  "  Narrative  "  in  Filson's  "  History  of  Kentucky,"  1784,  p.  326. 

^  See  Collins'  "  History  of  Kentucky." 

*  Boone's  "  Narrative,"  in  Filson,  p.  326.  Collins'  "  History,"  Vol.  II, 
p.  495- 

'  Collins'  "  History  of  Kentucky,"  Vol.  II,  pp.  462,  579. 


134  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's    JOURNALS. 

County,  Kentucky ;  then  he  struck  the  head  of  the  Pound 
Fork  of  the  Big  Sandy  River,  in  Wise  County,  Virginia.  Coal 
is  abundant  in  this  county  and  has  many  surface  indications.' 

April  3. — On  the  stream  called  Indian  Creek,  the  middle 
head  fork  of  the  Big  Sandy,  in  Wise  County.  The  Crane 
was  a  totem  or  badge  of  one  of  the  Miami  tribes ;  ^  also  of  the 
Wyandots.'  A  common  practice  among  the  Indian  tribes, 
with  war  parties  at  a  distance  from  home,  was  to  paint  on  trees 
or  a  rock  figures  of  warriors,  prisoners,  animals,  etc.,  as  intel- 
ligible to  other  Indians  as  a  printed  handbill  among  whites.'' 

April  7. — On  Guesse's  Creek  or  River,  a  branch  of  Clinch, 
in  Wise  County,  Virginia.  This  stream  was  probably  named 
for  our  explorer — Gist  being  often  mispronounced  "  Guess." 
On  the  map  of  Kentucky,  in  Imlay's  "History,"  third  edition, 
1797,  Gist's  Creek,  a  branch  of  Brashear's,  in  Shelby  County, 
is  marked  Guesse's  Creek.  ^ 

April  23.— Along  the  New  Garden  ridge,  dividing  Buchanan 
and  Russell  counties. 

April  27-29. — In  Baptist  Valley,  Tazewell  County.  From 
the  7th  to  this  day — the  29th — Gist  was  slowly  toiling  along  on 
his  general  course,  east  and  northeast,  in  the  valley  of  Clinch 
River,  on  the  south  side  of  the  ridge  dividing  the  heads  of 
the  Big  Sandy  from  the  Clinch,  which  stream  he  evidently 
supposed  to  be  the  Cuttawa  or  Kentucky. 

'  Madison's  Map  of  Virginia.   State  Map  of  Virginia.  Lloyd's  Map,  etc. 

a  "  New  York  Colonial  History,"  Vol.  IX,  pp.  621,  1057. 

^  Howe's  "  History  of  Ohio,"  Wyandot  County.  Kirchval's  "  History  of 
the  Valley  of  Virginia,"  p.  67.  Howe's  Historical  Collection  of  Virginia, 
Tazewell  County.    Morris'  "  Narrative,"  p.  491. 

*  For  a  curious  instance  of  their  conveying  defiant  notice  in  this  manner 
to  their  enemies,  the  French,  see  Schoolcraft,  "American  Aboriginal 
Archives,"  and  Colden's  "History  of  the  Five  Nations,"  Vol.  II,  Chap- 
ter XII. 

=  See  Martin's  "  Geographical  Gazetteer  of  Virginia,"  pp.  434-35,  and 
map. 


NOTES   TO   CHRISTOPHER   GIST's    JOURNAL    OF    I75O-5I.       135 

April  30. — The  Blue  Stone  River,  in  Abbs  Valley,  Tazewell 
County,  northeast  of  Jeffersonville.  In  1756  and  subsequent 
years  the  Indians  from  north  of  the  Ohio  made  frequent  in- 
cursions against  the  settlers  in  Western  Virginia,  by  way  of 
Kentucky  or  Big  Sandy  rivers,  and  then  by  the  Blue  Stone  to 
the  Kenhawha  or  New  River.' 

May  I. — In  Mercer  County,  the  "very  high  mountain," 
upon  the  top  of  which  was  a  rock,  sixty  or  seventy  feet  high, 
to  the  top  of  which  he  climbed,  is  on  the  west  side  of  New 
River.  The  eminence  Gist  paused  to  climb  was  not  the 
"Hawk's  Nest,"  as  erroneously  stated  by  Mr.  Bancroft.'' 
That  grand  precipice  overhangs  the  east  bank  of  New  River, 
in  Fayette  County,  at  least  fifty  miles  north  of  the  ridge 
ascended  by  Gist.  The  Kanawha  "  breaks  through  the  next 
high  mountain  below  the  mouth  of  Greenbrier  River,  in 
Raleigh  and  Greenbrier  counties." 

May  7. — This  stream  is  usually  called  "  Kanhawha  "  below 
the  junction  of  the  Gauley  and  New  Rivers.  Respecting  the 
origin  of  the  names  Kanhawha  and  New  River  or  Woods 
River,  see  note  to  Gist's  second  "Journal." 

May  8. — He  reached  and  crossed  the  New  River,  below  the 
mouth  of  Indian  Creek,'  which  is  eight  miles  in  a  direct  line 
above  the  mouth  of  the  Blue  Stone. 

May  9. — On  the  stream  well  known  as  Indian  Creek,  at  the 
mouth  of  Drooping  Lick  Creek,  in  Monroe  County,  about  mid- 
way from  the  Red  to  the  Salt  Sulphur  Springs. 

May  10. — Peters'  Mountain. 

May  II. — Big  Stony  Creek,  in  Giles  County.  The  "Lake 
or  Pond  "  is  on  the  summit  of  Salt  Pond  Mountain,  in  the 

'  Howe's  "  Historical  Collection  of  Virginia,"  p.  490.  Bicldey's  "  History 
of  Indian  Wars  of  Tazewell  County,"  1852,  p.  191. 
2 "  History  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  IV,  p.  82. 
'  In  Monroe  County. 


136  CHRISTOPHER    GIST'S    JOURNALS. 

same  county,  and  about  ten  miles  east  of  Parisburgh.  "  The 
water  is  fresh,  clear  and  inhabited  by  fine  trout." '  Produces 
but  few  fish.^  "  The  Lake  is  three-quarters  of  a  mile  long 
and  will  average  a  third  of  a  mile  in  width.'  This  agrees 
with  Gist's  estimate  of  its  dimensions.  -Pollard  also  states 
that  "  it  has  never  been  inhabited  by  fish  ...  all  placed  in 
it  disappeared."  ■*  Sinking  Creek  is  also  in  Giles  County ;  this 
stream  sinks,  a  mile  or  more  before  reaching  the  New  River, 
by  an  underground  passage  or  channel. 

May  13. — Richard  Hall's,  at  or  near  where  Christiansburgh 
now  stands,  in  Montgomery  County. 

May  14. — Thomas  Lee  was  the  President  of  the  Council 
of  Virginia. 

May  15. — This  day  he  reached  a  point  at  or  near  Little 
River,  in  the  present  Floyd  County. 

May  16. — "  Beaver  Island  Creek."  He  encamped  by  its 
main  branch,  now  called  Big  Reedy  Island  Creek,  in  the 
present  Carroll  County. 

May  17. — At  the  "Flower  Gap,"  on  the  dividing  line  between 
the  present  counties  of  Carroll,  in  Virginia,  and  Surry,  in 
North  Carolina. 

May  18. — On  the  north  side  of  the  Yadkin  River,  and  on 
the  west  side  of  the  stream  marked  Saw  Mill  Creek,  near  and 
west  of  Reddies  River,  near  the  present  town  of  Wilkesbarre, 
in  Wilkes  County,  North  Carolina,^  on  which  Gist's  place  of 
residence  is  marked.* 

1  Howe's  "  Historical  Collection  of  Virginia,"  p.  278.  Boyes'  State  Map 
of  Virginia,  1859.     "  Gazetteer  of  Virginia,"  p.  346. 

2  Kirchval's  "  Valley  of  Virginia,"  p.  343,  where  it  is  also  stated  tliat 
"the  pond  has  risen  twenty-five  feet  since  1804." 

3  Pollard's  "Virginia  Tourist,"  1870,  p.  146. 
••Id.,  p.  141. 

5  See  Fry  &  Jefferson's  Map  of  Virginia,  1751-55. 

"  See  also  map  engraved  for  Jefferson's  "  Notes  on  Virginia,"  and  Price 
&  Strothers'  State  Map  of  North  Carolina,  1808. 


Lone  I, 


^(urnan    "''^^ 


NURE 


Al<rom  (quinj -■ 


^of^fjound 


^G,     1756. 


NOTES  TO  GIST'S  SECOND  JOURNAL,  1751-52. 


November  4,  1751. — The  Ohio  Company's  store-house  stood 
on  the  south  bank  of  the  Potomac,  directly  opposite  to  the 
present  city  of  Cumberland,  Maryland,  in  Frederick  (now 
Hampshire)  County,  Virginia.  It  was  built  in  the  year  1750, 
by  Hugh  Parker,  the  Factor  of  the  Company,  on  land  pur- 
chased for  them  from  Lord  Fairfax  by  Parker  and  Colonel 
Thomas  Cresap.  The  main  building  was  constructed  of  timber, 
a  double  house  and  two  stories  in  height ;  it  stood  on  the  bank, 
a  short  distance  east  of  the  present  residence'  of  Captain 
Perry,  fronting  and  near  the  river.''  The  name  of  "Caicutuck 
or  Wills'  Creek  "  first  appeared  on  Fry  &  Jefferson's  Map  of 
Virginia  and  Maryland,  175 1.  It  is  accurately  laid  down,  but 
not  named,  on  Mayo's  Map  of  the  Survey  of  the  Potomac  in 
1736.  The  gap  in  the  Allegheny  Mountains  is  four  miles 
west  of  Cumberland,  where  the  Baltimore  &  Ohio  Railroad 
crosses  the  National  Road  at  "Braddock's  Run,"  as  the  south- 
west fork  of  Wills'  Creek  has  been  called  since  1755;  Brad- 
dock's  route  and  the  National  Road  as  at  first  constructed 
being  on  the  same  track  as  that  of  Gist.' 

November  5. — To  a  point  about  three  miles  west  of  the 
present  town  of  Frostburgh,  in  Garrett  County,  Maryland,  on 
the  National  Road. 

>  1877. 

2  Copy  of  drawing  in  the  King's  Library,  British  Museum,  made  for  W. 
M.  Darlington,  1874.  London  Board  of  Trade  MS.  Fry  &  Jefferson's 
Map  of  Virginia,  1751.  Sparks'  "Washington  Letters,"  Vol  II,  p.  15. 
"  Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Vol.  II,  p.  134. 

' "  Braddock's  Expedition." 

'0  ('37) 


138  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

November  8. — Little  Meadow  Run  and  other  small  streams, 
heads  of  Castleman's  River,  or  the  middle  fork  of  the  Youghi- 
ogheny  ;  on  the  west  side  or  foot  of  Little  Meadow  Mountain, 
and  about  twenty  miles  west  of  Cumberland,  in  Garrett 
County,  Maryland,  and  Elk  Lick  Township,  Somerset  County, 
Pennsylvania. 

November  20-21. — Crossing  Negro  Mountain  into  Addison 
Township,  Somerset  County,  Pennsylvania. 

November  22. — The  Youghiogheny  River  has  three  heads  or 
forks :  the  main,  or  south  fork,  rises  in  Preston  County,  West 
Virginia,  near  the  spring-head  of  the  Potomac;   the  middle 
fork,  or  Castleman's  River,  rises  in  Garrett  County,  Maryland, 
and  the  north  fork,  or  Laurel  Hill  Creek,  rises  in  Somerset 
County,    Pennsylvania.      The   name   first    appears,    marked 
"Spring  heads  of  Yok-yo-gane  river   a  south  branch  of  the 
Monongahela,"  on  a  "Map  of  the  Northern  Neck  in  Virginia, 
the  Territory  of  Thomas  Lord  Fairfax  according  to  a  late  sur- 
vey drawn  in  the  year  1737  by  Wm.  Mayo."'    It  next  appears 
on  Fry  and  Jefferson's  Map  of  Virginia  and  Maryland,  of  175 1, 
as  the  "  Yawyawganey  River."    Gist  seems  to  have  reached  the 
middle  fork  this  day,  above  Lost  Run,  in  the  northwest  part 
of  Addison  Township,  Somerset  County,  Pennsylvania,  thence 
crossed  into  Upper  Turkey-foot  Township. 

November  24. — Crossed  the  south  fork  at  Turkey-foot,  or 
Three  Forks,  near  the  present  town  of  Confluence,  in  Somer- 
set County,  where  the  three  branches  of  the  Youghiogheny 
unite ;  thence  proceeding,  he  encamped  about  the  head  of 
"  Gabriel's  Run,"  in  Henry  Clay  Township,  Fayette  County. 
The  name  Youghiogheny — Youghanne — was  evidently  given 
to  this  stream  by  the  Indian  tribe  of  the  Kanhawhas,  Conoys 
or  Canawese,  who,  in  the  beginning  of  the  last  century,  in- 
habited the  country  around  the  heads  of  the  Potomac  and 

'  "  History  of  the  Dividing  Line,"  and  other  Tracts,  Richmond,  1866, 
Vol.  II,  p.  117,  etc. 


NOTES   TO   gist's   SECOND   JOURNAL,    I75I-S2.  139 

back  of  the  great  mountains  in  Virginia.'  They  were  of  the 
same  nation  and  language  as  the  Nanticokes,  of  the  Algon- 
quin, Lenape  or  Delaware  stock.  Yough — four — and  hanne 
— stream  or  rapid-flowing  stream.  As  before  mentioned,  the 
three  head  branches  of  this  river  join  at  the  point  and  form  a 
fourth  or  main  stream.' 

November  25. — To  the  Licks,  on  Stony  Fork  of  Big  Sandy 
Creek,  in  Wharton  Township,  Fayette  County,  and  near  the 
National  Road. 

November  26-29. — I"  George's  and  South  Union  townships, 
Fayette  County. 

December  6.^The  upper  forks  of  the  Monongahela  are 
formed  by  the  junction  of  Cheat  River,  in  Fayette  and  Green 
counties,  near  the  southern  boundary-line  of  the  State.  The 
general  course  of  Gist  from  Wills'  Creek  to  the  Monongahela 
was  to  the  north  of  the  road  subsequently  opened  for  the  Ohio 
Company,  in  1752-53,  by  Gist  and  Cresap,  they  employing  In- 
dians for  that  purpose.  The  troops  under  Washington,  in  1754, 
greatly  repaired  it  as  far  as  Gist's  plantation,  and  in  1 75  5  it  was 
widened  and  completed  by  General  Braddock's  army  to  within 
about  six  miles  of  Fort  Du  Quesne.'  The  reader  will  readily 
observe  that  Gist  deviated  continually  from  a  direct  path,  in 

'  See  notes  on  the  Kanawha  Post. 

*  Smith's  "  History  of  Virginia,"  1629.  Richmond  edition,  1819,  Vol.  I, 
p.  147.  "  Hakluyt  Society,"  1849,  p.  96.  "  Roger  Williams'  Key,"  p.  22. 
Heckwelder,  "  History  of  the  Indian  Nations,"  1819,  pp.  26-74.  John 
Eliot's  "Indian  Grammar,"  Massachusetts  Historical  Collection,  Vol. 
IX,  Series  2,  p.  260.  Dr.  Edwards'  "  Indian  Language,"  id.,  Vol.  X,  p. 
129,  Connecticut  Historical  Society,  Vol.  II,  pp.  4-12,  etc.  Gallatin's 
"  Synopsis  of  the  Indian  Tribes."  "Transactions  of  the  American  Anti- 
quarian Society,"  Vol.  1 1,  pp.  52-56,  and  Vocabulary,  same  volume,  p.  359. 

■'  Resolutions  of  the  Ohio  Company,  at  a  meeting  held  at  Stafford  Court 
House,  June  21,  1749.  Also  at  Ocquoquan  Ferry,  December,  1750,  and  in 
March,  1753.     MS. 


140  CHRISTOPHER    GIST  S    JOURNALS. 

order  to  explore  the  country  thoroughly,  pursuant  to  his  in- 
structions. 

December  7. — This  Indian  owner  of  this  camp  was  the  well- 
known  Delaware,  Nemacolin.  The  creek  was  called  by  his 
name  in  early  times,  but  subsequently  changed  to  Dunlap's.' 
It  empties  into  the  Monongahela,  at  Brownsville.'^  Nema- 
colin was  the  principal  of  the  Indians  employed  by  Gist  and 
Cresap  to  blaze  and  clear  the  road  before  mentioned.  He  was 
intelligent  and  trustworthy."  A  letter  from  his  father, 
Checochinican,  the  chief  of  the  Indians  on  the  Brandywine,  to 
Governor  Gordon,  June  24,  1729,  is  in  the  "Pennsylvania 
Archives,"  Vol.  I,  p.  239.  It  seems  the  Indians  had  sold 
their  lands  on  the  Brandywine,  reserving  a  part  on  the  head 
of  the  creek,  by  a  writing,  which  was  burned,  with  the  cabin 
wherein  it  was  deposited.  The  mill-dams  of  the  white  settlers 
destroyed  their  fishing,  and  they  were  otherwise  "  crowded 
out " — as  usual  to  the  present  day.*  Charles  Pokes's  name 
appears  in  the  list  of  Indian  traders  in  1734.'  On  Mayo's 
Map,  of  1737,  his  name  is  marked,  with  those  of  four  other 
settlers,  at  the  north  bend  of  the  Potomac,  where  Hancock, 
Maryland,  now  stands.'  In  1774  he  lived  on  Cross  Creek, 
West   Virginia,  about  sixteen  miles  from  the  Ohio  River, 

'  An  old  trader. 

''"  Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Vol.  XII,  p.  347.  "  Shippen  Papers,"  p. 
163.     "American  Pioneer,"  Vol.  II,  p.  60. 

■'Jacobs'  "Life  of  Cresap,"  1828,  p.  28. 

*  See  "  Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Vol.  XII,  p.  281.  "  Colonial  Records," 
Vol.  Ill,  p.  269.  "Votes  of  Assembly,"  1726,  Vol.  II,  p.  481.  Smith's 
"  History  of  Delaware  County,"  pp.  235,  240.  Gordon's  "  History  of 
Pennsylvania,"   p.   194.     Hazard's   "  Pennsylvania  Register,"  Vol.  I,   p. 

114. 

^"  Colonial  Archives,"  Vol.  I,  p.  425. 

'  See  also  "  Colonial  Records  of  Pennsylvania,"  Vol.  V,  p.  760. 


NOTES   TO   gist's   SECOND   JOURNAL,    I75I-S2.  I4I 

where  Wellsville  is  now  situated.      He  was  still  living  in 
Shelby  County,  Kentucky,  in  1799.' 

December  9.— River  Monongahela,  said  to  be  from  the 
Shawnee  Mehmonauangehelak.  Falling-in-Bank  River.' 
"The  Cavity  in  a  Rock"  was  probably  on  the  river  bank,  on 
the  east  side,  six  miles  from  Brownsville,  up  the  river,  on  the 
farm  now  owned  by  Captain  Jacobs  ;  in  the  original  patent  it 
is  called  the  Cave  Tract,  "  Menangihilli ; "  this  word  implies 
"high  banks  breaking  off  in  some  places  and  tumbling  down."' 
The  correctness  of  these  definitions  is  doubtful,  the  banks  of 
this  river  do  not  "  fall  in  "  or  "  break  off "  more  than  those  of 
the  Ohio,  Allegheny,  and  many  other  streams,  nor  is  it  known 
that  they  ever  did,  and  the  Indians  invariably  gave  accurate 
descriptive  names.  It  may  be,  however,  that  the  banks  at 
some  point  on  the  river  "fell  in"  on  some  occasion,  to  com- 
memorate which,  the  Indians  applied  the  name.* 

December  15.— Crossed  the  Monongahela  to  the  west  side, 
below  the  mouth  of  the  Youghiogheny. 

December  17.— OppaymoUeah,  a  Delaware  Chief,  appeared 
at  the  conference  held  at  Fort  Pitt,  in  April  and  May, 
1768,  by  George  Croghan,  Deputy  Agent  for  Indian  Affairs, 
the  Commissioners  of  Pennsylvania,  Alexander  McKee, 
the  Commander,  and  officers  of  the  garrison,  with 
the  chiefs  and  warriors  of  the  Six  Nations,  Delawares, 
Wyandots  and  others  residing  on  the  waters  of  the  Ohio. 
1 103  Indians  were  present,  besides  their  women  and  children.' 

'  See  his  Deposition  in  Appendix  to  Jefferson's  "  Notes  on  Virginia," 
edition  of  1801,  p.  368. 

2  See  note  to  "Washington's  Tour  to  the  Ohio,"  p.  244. 

8  John  Heckwelder,  "  American  Philosophical  Society,"  Vol.  IV,  new 
series,  1834,  p.  376. 

<  The  name  Monongahela  first  appears  on  the  map  of  William  Mayo, 
in  1737,  and  next  on  the  map  of  Fry  and  Jefferson,  1751. 

5  "Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  IX,  p.  54,  etc. 


142  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S  JOURNALS. 

Joshua  was  a  Delaware  also.  In  December,  1759,  he  and 
Tangoochqua  (Wissameek)  or  Catfish,  were  sent  as  messen- 
gers from  the  Delawares  on  the  Ohio,  to  Philadelphia,  with  a 
message  to  the  Governor  and  Council  of  Pennsylvania.'  The 
Beaver,  or  Tamaque,  was  the  King  or  Head  Chief  of  the 
Delaware  tribe  on  the  waters  of  the  Ohio.  He  resided  at 
Soh-kon,  (mouth  of  Beaver  Creek),  afterwards  at  Kuskuskis, 
near  the  Forks,  and  in  1764,  at  the  Forks  of  Tuscarawas.^ 
He  frequently  appeared  at  conferences  held  at  Fort  Pitt,  and 
also  at  Philadelphia.  He  was  the  brother  of  Shingiss  and 
Custaloga.  He  died  about  1770,  on  the  Muskingum,  where 
the  Moravian  town  of  Gnadenhutten  was  built  two  years 
afterwards,  near  the  present  town  of  New  Philadelphia.^ 

January  8,  1752. — To  head  of  Fish  Creek,  Marshall  County, 
West  Virginia,  and  Green  County,  Pennsylvania. 

January  22. — To  a  point  in  Wetzel  County,  West  Virginia, 
between  Little  and  Big  Fishing  Creek. 

January  27. — To  a  point  over  south  side  of  Fishing  Creek, 
Wetzel  County. 

February  i. — At  Middle  Island  Creek,  near  Middlebourne, 
Tyler  County. 

February  2. — Three  miles  south  of  Middlebourne. 

February  10. — On  McKun's  Fork  of  Middle  Island  Creek, 
Pleasants  County. 

February  11. — Hughes  River,  near  Hainesville,  Ritchie 
County. 

February  14. — This  stone  stood  on  the  creek  bottom, 
opposite  the  slip  in  the  hill,  on  the  left  hand  or  Parish  Fork 
of  Standing  Stone  Creek.  Within  the  past  ten  years^  oil 
having  been  found  there  the  stone  was  broken  up  to  make 

■    1  "  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  VIII,  p.  415.    "Archives,"  Vol.  Ill,  p.S7S- 
2  Journals  of  C.    F.   Post,   1758.   "  Bouquet's   Expedition  Against  the 
Ohio  Indians,"  1765. 

*  Pennsylvania  Historical  Society,  Vol.  1,  pp.  i47-iS3- 

*  1877. 


NOTES   TO   gist's   SECOND   JOURNAL,    I75I-S2.  143 

walls  for  steam  boilers.  The  inscription  cut  on  it  no  doubt, 
had  long  previous  been  effaced  by  the  lapse  of  time  or  in- 
crusted  over  by  lime.  The  date  cut  by  Gist,  February,  175 1, 
was  in  accordance  with  the  old  style  of  computation,  by  which 
the  year  began  on  the  25th  of  March,  instead  of  the  ist  of 
January,  to  which  it  was  changed  throughout  the  British 
Dominions,  by  law,  in  175 1,  the  new  style  to  commence  on 
January  i,  1752.  Why  Gist  cut  the  date  1751  instead  of  1752 
is  not  easy  to  explain,  especially  as  his  Journal  is  kept  by  the 
new  method  of  computing  time. 

February  15.— Near  Wirt,  C.  H.,  (Elizabeth,)  the  creek  is 
the  Little  Kanawha. 

February  16. — On  the  head  of  Lee's  Creek,  Wirt  County. 

February  17. — To  Poplar  Fork  of  Thirteen-Mile  Creek  of 
the  Big  Kanawha,  after  passing  through  Jackson  County. 
The  Kanawha  River  derived  its  name  from  a  tribe  of 
Indians,  who  formerly  inhabited  the  country  on  its  waters, 
and  also  on  the  upper  Potomac.  These  tribes  were  destroyed 
by  the  Iroquois  or  Five  Nations  about  the  close  of  the  seven- 
teenth century,  and  their  remnants  incorporated  with  their 
conquerors.  At  the  Treaty  of  Lancaster,  in  1744,  the 
Iroquois  Chief,  Tachanoontia,  Said  :  "All  the  world  knows  we 
conquered  the  several  nations  living  on  Susquehannah, 
Cohongownton,  (Potomac),  and  on  the  back  of  the  great 
mountains  in  Virginia.  The  Conoy-uch-rooch  (people),  the 
Coh-no-was-ronaw,  feel  the  effect  of  our  conquests  being  now 
a  part  of  our  nations  and  their  lands  at  our  disposal,"  and, 
again,  "as  to  what  lies  beyond  the  mountains,  we  conquered 
the  nations  residing  there,  and  that  land,  if  the  Virginians 
ever  get  a  good  right  to  it,  it  must  be  by  us."'     Mr.  Gallatin 

'  "  Treaty  of  Lancaster,"  printed  by  B.  Franklin,  at  Philadelphia,  1744, 
Vol.  II,  pp.  57-71;  also  in  Colden's  "History  of  the  Five  Nations,"  3d 
edition,  1755,  Vol.  II,  pp.  57,  71.  "  Pennsylvania  Colonial  Records,"  Vol. 
IV,  p.  712.    Albert  Gallatin's  "  Synopsis  of  the  Indian  Tribes." 


144  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's    JOURNALS. 

supposes  the  tribes  on  the  Potomac  and  Kanawha  to  be  dis- 
tinct or  different,  although  their  names  are  near  alike. 
Evidently  they  were  kindred  tribes  of  the  same  nation. 
John  Heckwelder  says  :  "  The  Conoys  are  the  people  we  call 
Canais,  Conoys,  Canaways,  Kanhawas.^  In  Pennsylvania 
they  were  called  Canawese." 

February  i8.— Over  the  Southern  Fork  of  Big  Mill  Creek, 
thence  to  the  top  of  the  ridge  near  the  Spruce  Fork  of  Thir- 
teen-Mile Creek. 

February  19.— Probably  Big  Buffalo  Creek,  in  Putnam 
County. 

February  20.— Across  Little  Buffalo  Creek  to  head  of 
Arbuckle's  Creek,  thence  north,  across  Thirteen-Mile  Creek, 
in  Mason  County. 

February  21.— Probably  encamped  at  the  mouth  of  Ten- 
Mile  Creek. 

February  22. — High  Hill,  the  Kanawha  Ridge,  about  eight 
miles  northeast  from  Point  Pleasant,  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Kanawha  River,  thence  to  the  river  Ohio,  at  the  mouth  of 
Ten-Mile  Creek. 

February  23.— Le  Tort's  Creek,  a  small  stream,  empties  into 
the  Ohio,  thirty  miles  above  Point  Pleasant,  so  called  for 
James  Le  Tort,  an  early  trader  with  the  Indians  on  the  Ohio. 
He  was  a  French  Huguenot,  and  lived  near  Philadelphia  in  his 
childhood;  afterwards  on  the  banks  of  the  Susquehanna, 
and  built  a  cabin  about  1720,  at  Le  Tort's  Spring,  where 
Carlisle,  Cumberland  County,  Pa.,  now  stands.^  He  was  often 
employed  as  interpreter  by  the  Provincial  authorities.  Trad- 
ing on  the  Allegheny  and  Ohio,  from  1729  to  1739,  he  appears 

'  "  Historical  Sketch  of  the  Indian  Nations,"  p.  26. 
'  "  Rupp's  History  of  Cumberland  County,"  p.  389.     "  Hazard's  Regis- 
ter of  Pennsylvania,"  Vol.  IV,  p.  389,  also  Vol.  XV,  p.  82. 


NOTES   TO   gist's   SECOND   JOURNAL,    I7SI-52.  I4S 

to  have  had  a  trading  camp  or  station  at  this  point,  since  well 
known  as  Le  Tort's  Rapids  or  Falls.' 

February  24.— Smith's  Creek.  Big  Mill  Creek,  in  Jackson 
County.  Probably  so  named  for  Robert  Smith,  the  trader, 
met  by  Gist,  on  the  Miami,  in  the  month  of  March.  He  had 
been  trading  in  the  Ohio  country  for  some  years  previous." 
The  creek  here  called  Beyansoss  is  Big  Sandy  Creek,  in  Jack- 
son County. 

February  26.— "  Lawwellaconin."  Pond  Creek,  in  Wood 
County. 

March  i.— "The  little  branch  full  of  coal"  is  probably  the 
head  of  the  middle  fork  of  Tygart's  Creek,  in  Wood  County. 
Naumissippia  or  Fishing  Creek,  another  name  for  the  Little 
Kanawha.  Naemas,  Fish,  Sipia  River  or  Creek,  in  the  Dela- 
ware tongue.' 

March  3. — Molchuconickon  or  Buffalo  Creek,  now  Middle 
Island  Creek,  in  Pleasants  and  Tyler  Counties.  The  name 
Buffalo  is  yet  applied  to  one  of  its  branches ;  the  distance  is 
greater  to  this  stream  from  the  little  Kanawha  than  it  is  here 
given.* 

March  4. — Probably  reached  a  point  near  the  present  Mid- 
dlebourne,  Tyler  County. 

March  5. — Neemokeesy,'  now  Fishing  Creek. 

March  7. — To  the  Ohio  River,  probably  a  few  miles  below 
Fish  Creek,  in  Marshall  County  ;  then  east  and  north  across 
Big  Grave  Creek  to  Wheeling  Creek,  about  the  junction  of 
the  North  and  South  Forks.     Wheeling  is  from  a  Delaware 

'  "  Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Vol.  I,  pp.  255-301,  etc.    "  Rupp's  History 
of  Lancaster  County,"  p.  512.    "  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  IV,  p.  237. 
^  See  Gist's  first  Journal,  March  ist,  13th. 
'  See  Fry  and  Jefferson's  Map. 

*  See  Gist's  statement  relative  to  distances  at  the  end  of  the  Journal. 
'  Naemas,  Fish. 


146  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

Indian  word  "  Wihe,"  or  "  Wie,"  (a  head),  ung  or  unk,  (place  or 
locality),  place  of  a  head.  A  prisoner  taken  and  put  to  death 
by  the  Indians  and  his  head  stuck  upon  a  sharpened  pole.' 
There  was  another  "  Wheeling  "  on  the  upper  branch  of  the 
Mahoning  Creek  in  Armstrong  County,  Pennsylvania." 

March  9. — The  first  creek  here  mentioned  is  now  called 
Buffalo  Creek.  It  empties  into  the  Ohio  at  Wellsburg,  in 
Brooke  County.  The  second  is  Cross  Creek.  Directly  op- 
posite to  it,  on  what  was  formerly  called  "The  Indiansideof  the 
Ohio,"  is  "  Indian  Cross  Creek."  These  were  the  two  creeks 
of  the  Indians  and  traders.  A  noted  Indian  path  led  down 
along  the  creek  on  the  west  side  to  the  crossing  place  at  its 
mouth.  There  the  Indians  crossed  to  the  creek  on  the  east 
side  of  the  Ohio  and  took  the  path  along  its  shore,  hence  the 
name  of  Cross  Creeks.  At  a  later  time,  these  creeks  were 
by  some  known  as  the  "  Two  Upper  Creeks,"  while  "  Short 
Creek,"  above  Wheeling  and  "  Indian  Short  Creek,"  opposite, 
were  called  the  "  Two  Lower  Creeks."  " 

March  10. — In  Brooke  County,  West  Virginia,  and  in  Wash- 
ington County,  Pennsylvania. 

March  11. — "  Crossing  Three  Creeks,"  branches  of  Buffalo 
Creek  in  Washington  County  ;  thence  south  to  the  "  camp  " 
of  December  21  to  January  8,  near  the  heads  of  Dunkard  and 
Ten-Mile  Creeks,  in  Greene  County,  Pennsylvania. 

'  Pennsylvania  Historical  Society,  Vol.  I,  p.  131.  American  Antiquarian 
Society,  Vol.  II,  p.  312.  Schoolcraft,  "American  Aboriginal  Arcliives," 
Vol.  II,  p.  470. 

*  Hutchins'  Map. 

^Hutchins'  large  Map,  1778.  George  Croghan's  Journal,  1765,  in  Ap- 
pendix to  Butler's  "History  of  Kentucky,"  second  edition.  Winter- 
botham's  "  America,"  Vol.  1,  p.  189. 


NOTES    ON    CHRISTOPHER    GIST'S    THIRD 
JOURNAL,  1753. 


November  14.     Wills  Creek  empties  into  the  Potomac. 

November  15. — Conegocheague,  a  branch  of  the  Potomac; 
signifying,  "  indeed,  a  long  way." 

November  23. — Shannopins  Town,  now  Pittsburgh. 

November  24. — King  Shingiss,  a  noted  Indian  warrior, 
"  a  terror  to  the  frontier  settlements  of  Pennsylvania." 

November  27 — Half  King  Scarrooyady,  often  mentioned 
by  Croghan,  Montour  and  others.  He  died  at  Paxton,  Oc- 
tober 5,  1754.  His  friends  imputed  his  death  to  French  witch- 
craft.    Letter  of  Governor  Morris  to  Governor  Dinwiddle. 

December  11. — Fort  Le  Boeuf. 


(147) 


A  JOURNAL  DESCRIPTIVE  OF  SOME  OF  THE 
FRENCH   FORTS. 


HAD    FROM    THOMAS    FORBES,    LATELY    A    PRIVATE 
SOLDIER  IN  THE  KING  OF  FRANCE'S  SERVICE.' 


January,  1755. 

About  a  Year  and  a  half  ago  I  with  120  private  Soldiers 
and  our  officers  embarked  in  old  France  for  Canada. 

Our  Vessel!  was  a  Frigate  of  forty  Guns  and  another  Frigate 
of  30  Guns  sailed  at  the  same  time  with  a  company  of  Soldiers 
to  relieve  the  Garrison  at  the  Mouth  of  the  Mississippi.  After 
a  short  Voyage  we  disembarked  at  Quebeck,  where  we  were 
permitted  to  stay  three  weeks  to  refresh  ourselves. 

The  regular  Troops  in  that  City  did  not  exceed  300,  but  I 
was  told  that  there  were  many  Parties  and  Detachments 
quartered  up  and  down  the  Country  all  round  that  Place. 

Being  joined  by  a  Company  of  50  Men  from  that  Garrison 
we  went  in  Batteaus  to  Montreal  under  the  Command  of 
Lieut.  Carqueville  and  there  we  spent  the  last  Winter. 

At  our  arrival  there  was  a  Company  of  50  men  in  the  City 
where  we  were  quartered,  so  that  in  all  we  made  220  exclusive 
of  Officers.  Very  early  in  the  Spring  we  were  joined  by  near 
400  more  who  were  drafted  out  of  the  several  Companies  that 
Garrisoned  the  Forts  and  were  posted  on  the  Frontiers  of 
Canada.  Easter  Tuesday  we  embarked  to  the  number  of  six 
or  700  in  about  3CX)  Batteaus  or  Canoes  (not  Barken)  and  took 
with  us  a  large  quantity  of  Barreled  Pork  and  Meal  in  Baggs  ; 
the  Bags  weighed  sixty  or  70  lb  each,  and   I  believe  there 

'  MSS.  "America  and  West  Indies."    P.  R.  O. 

(148) 


A    DESCRIPTIVE  JOURNAL    OF    FRENCH    FORTS.  I49 

might  have  been  1500  of  them,  how  many  of  the  Pork  there 
were  I  never  heard  nor  could  I  guess,  but  I  believe  the  Canoes 
that  were  not  laden  with  Flour  carried  five  or  six  Barrels  at 
least,  each  of  them,  and  the  Batteaus  received  17  or  20.  We 
were  three  weeks  going  from  Montreal  to  Lake  Ontario  keep- 
ing the  shore  close  on  board  because  of  the  rapidity  of  the 
Stream,  and  at  Night  we  went  ashore,  excepting  a  few  that  were 
left  with  the  canoes,  that  were  fastened  to  stakes  or  trees  on 
the  shore. 

Then  we  had  our  Biscuit,  which  was  laid  in  for  the  Voyage, 
delivered  to  us,  with  i  lb  of  Pork  to  each,  and  kindling  large 
fires  we  cooked  our  Provisions  for  next  day  and  slept  around 
the  Fires,  each  of  us  being  provided  with  a  blanket.  We  kept 
along  the  southeast  shore  of  Ontario  Lake,  and  passed  so  near 
to  the  English  Fort  called  Conquen  or  Oswego  that  we  could 
talk  to  the  Centinels. 

When  we  came  to  the  Fort  at  the  Falls  of  Niagara,  we 
landed  all  our  Provisions  in  which  service  the  Garrison  at  the 
Fort  assisted  and  carried  them  on  sleds  that  were  there  at  the 
fort,  to  a  little  Log  House  (called  le  petit  Fort  de  Niagara) 
three  Leagues  beyond  Niagara  Fort,  where  we  put  them  aboard 
other  Batteaus  and  Canoes  that  were  there  ready  to  receive 
them.  At  our  arrival  at  Niagara  there  were  at  that  Fort 
25  private  men,  commanded  by  Lieut,  de  la  Perrie,  but 
Monsieur  Contrecoeur  was  also  then  in  the  Fort,  and  had 
the  Chief  command,  there  was  also  a  Sergeant's  Guard  at  the 
little  Fort.  The  Fort  at  Niagara  is  no  more  than  an  Emmen- 
ence  surrounded  with  Stockadoes  or  Palisades,  which  stand 
about  fourteen  feet  above  the  ground  very  close  together, 
and  are  united  or  fastened  together  by  three  pieces  of  long 
scantling  that  is  put  transversly  on  the  inside  at  the  distance 
of  three  feet  or  so  from  each  other.  TheSe  Stockadoes 
enclose  an  Area  near  300  paces  square  on  which  is  built  a 


150  CHRISTOPHER    GIST'S   JOURNALS. 

House  for  the  Commandant,  Barracks  for  the  Men  and  a 
Smith's  Shop,  it  is  not  rendered  defensible  by  any  out  work 
or  even  a  Ditch  and  there  are  not  mounted  in  it  more  than 
four  Swivel  Guns.  As  soon  as  we  had  put  our  Provisions  on 
board  at  the  little  Fort  that  I  mentioned,'  we  proceeded  to 
Lake  Erie  with  Captain  Contracoeur,  who  had  himself  now 
taken  the  Command  of  all  the  Troops  in  those  Canoes.  We 
kept  along  the  Eastern  Coast  of  this  Lake  to  Fort  Presqu'  isle 
which  I  apprehend  is  about  50  Leagues  from  Niagara. 

This  Fort  is  situated  on  a  little  rising  Ground  at  a  very 
small  Distance  from  the  water  of  Lake  Erie,  it  is  rather 
larger  than  that  at  Niagara  but  has  likewise  no  Bastions  or 
Out  Works  of  any  sort.  It  is  a  square  Area  inclosed  with 
Logs  about  12  feet  high,  the  Logs  being  square  and  laid  on 
each  other  and  not  more  than  sixteen  or  eighteen  inches 
thick.  Captain  Darpontine  Commandant  in  this  Fort  and  his 
Garison  was  30  private  Men.  We  were  eight  days  employed 
in  unloading  our  Canoes  here,  and  carrying  the  Provisions  to 
Fort  Boeuff  which  is  built  about  six  Leagues  from  Fort 
Presqu'  isle  at  the  Head  of  Buffaloe  River.  This  Fort  was 
composed  of  four  Houses  built  by  way  of  Bastions  and  the 
intermediate  Space  stockaded.  Lieut  St  Blein  was  posted 
here  with  20  Men.  Here  we  found  three  large  Batteaus  and 
between  two  or  300  Canoes  which  we  freighted  with  Provisions 
and  proceeded  down  the  Buffaloe  river  which  flows  into  the 
Ohio'  at  about  twenty  Leagues  (as  |I  conceived)  distance 
from  Fort  au  Boeuff,  this  river  was  small  and  at  some  places 
very  shallow  so  that  we  towed  the  Canoes  sometimes  wading 
and  sometimes  taking  ropes  to  the  shore  a  great  part  of  the 
way.  When  we  came  into  the  Ohio  we  had  a  fine  deep  water 
and  a  stream  in  our  favour  so  that  we  rowed  down  that  river 
from  the  mouth  of  the  Buffaloe  to  Du  Quesne  Fort  on 
'  Allegheny. 


A    DESCRIPTIVE  JOURNAL   OF   FRENCH    FORTS.  I5I 

Monongehela  which  I  take  to  be  70  Leagues  distant  in  four 
days  and  a  half. 

At  our  arrival  at  Fort  Du  Quesne  we  found  the  Garison 
busily  employed  in  compleating  that  Fort  and  Stockadoing  it 
round  at  some  distance  for  the  security  of  the  Soldiers  Bar- 
racks (against  any  Surprise)  which  are  built  between  the 
Stockadoes  and  the  Glacis  of  the  Fort. 

Fort  Du  Quesne  is  built  of  square  Logs  transversly  placed 
as  is  frequent  in  Mill  Dams,  and  the  Interstices  filled  up  with 
Earth  ;  the  length  of  these  Logs  is  about  sixteen  Feet  which 
is  the  thickness  of  the  Rampart.  There  is  a  Parapat  raised 
on  the  Rampart  of  Logs,  and  the  length  of  the  Curtains  is 
about  30  feet,  and  the  Demigorge  of  the  Bastions  about 
eighty.  The  Fort  is  surrounded  on  the  two  sides  that  do  not 
front  the  Water  with  a  Ditch  about  12  feet  wide  and  very 
deep,  because  there  being  no  covert  way  the  Musqutteers 
fire  from  thence  having  a  Glacis  before  them.  When  the 
News  of  Ensign  Jumonville's  Defeat  reached  us  our  com- 
pany consisted  of  about  1400.  Seven  hundred  of  whom  were 
ordered  out  under  the  command  of  Captain  Mercier  to  attack 
Mr.  Washington,  after  our  return  from  the  Meadows,  a  great 
number  of  the  Soldiers  who  had  been  labouring  at  the  Fort  all 
the  Spring  were  sent  off  in  Divisions  to  the  several  Forts 
between  that  and  Canada,  and  some  of  those  that  came  down 
last  were  sent  away  to  build  a  Fort  some  where  on  the  Head 
of  the  Ohio,  so  that  in  October  the  Garison  at  Du  Quesne 
was  reduced  to  4CX3  Men,  who  had  Provisions  enough  at  the 
Fort  to  last  them  two  years,  notwithstanding  a  good  deal  of  the 
Flour  we  brought  down  in  the  Spring  proved  to  be  damaged, 
and  some  of  it  spoiled  by  the  rains  that  fell  at  that  Time. 
In  October  last  I  had  an  opportunity  of  relieving  myself  and 
retiring,  there  were  not  then  any  Indians  with  the  French 
but  a  considerable  number  v/ere  expected  and  said  to  be  on 
their  March  thither. 


Si 


THE  MONTOURS. 


About  the  year  1667  a  French  gentleman  named  Montour 
settled  in  Canada.  By  a  Huron  Indian  woman  he  had  three 
children — one  son  and  two  daughters.  The  son,  Montour, 
lived  with  the  Indians,  and  was  wounded  in  the  French  ser- 
vice, in  a  fight  with  some  Mohawks,  near  Fort  La  Motte,^  on 
Lake  Champlain,  in  1694.  He  deserted  from  the  French,  and 
lived  with  "the  farr  Indians" — the  Twightwees  (Mianiis)  and 
Diondadies  (Petuns  or  Wyandots).  By  his  assistance  Lord 
Cornbury  prevailed  on  some  of  these  tribes  to  visit  and  trade 
with  the  people  of  Albany  in  1708.  For  his  endeavors  to 
alienate  the  "  upper  nations  "  from  the  French,  he  was  killed 
in  1709  by  the  troops  under  Lieutenant  le  Sieur  de  Joncaire, 
by  orders  of  the  Marquis  de  Vaudreuil,  Governor  of  Canada, 
who  wrote  that  he  would  have  had  him  hanged,  had  it  been 
possible  to  capture  him  alive. 

Of  the  two  daughters  of  the  Frenchman,  Montour,  one 
became  conspicuously  known  as  Madame  Montour.*  She  was 
born  in  Canada  about  the  year  1684,  captured  by  some  war- 
riors of  the  Five  Nations  when  she  was  but  ten  years  old, 
taken  to  their  country  and  brought  up  by  them.  It  is  prob- 
able that  she  lived  with  the  Oneidas,  as,  on  arriving  at  matur- 
ity, she  was  married  to  Carondawana,  or  the  "  Big  Tree," 
otherwise  Robert  Hunter,  a  famous  war-chief  of  that  nation. 

'  "  New  York  Colonial  History:"  Fort  St.  Anne,  or  La  Motte,  erected 
1666,  on  the  upper  part  of  Lake  Champlain. 

2  "  Massachusetts  Historical  Collection."  "  New  York  Historical  Col- 
lection." 

(152) 


THE    MONTOURS.  IS3 

He  was  killed  in  the  wars  between  the  Iroquois  and  Catawbas, 
in  the  Carolinas,  about  the  year  1729.' 

The  Proprietaries  of  Pennsylvania,  John  and  Thomas  Penn, 
expressed  much  concern  for  his  death  to  some  of  the  Indians 
who  visited  Philadelphia  in  September,  1734.  Madame  Mon- 
tour was  there  also,  and,  for  having  underrated  the  rank  or 
station  of  the  Oneida  visitors,  she  seems  to  have  been  angrily 
and  unjustly  charged  by  a  prominent  chief  of  the  Six  Nations, 
Hetanguantagetchy,  before  the  Council  at  Philadelphia,  in  the 
month  of  October  following,  with  spreading  false  reports.  He 
said,  further,  that  her  "old  age  only  protected  her  from  pun- 
ishment," and  that  they  "  must  resent  it  and  hope  to  get  rid 
of  her." 

Madame  Montour  first  appeared  as  interpreter  at  a  confer- 
ence held  at  Albany,  in  August,  171 1,  between  the  sachems 
of  the  Five  Nations  and  Robert  Hunter,  the  royal  Governor 
of  New  York  (from  1709  to  1719).  Probably  at  that  time 
Carondawana  received,  or  took,  the  Governor's  name,  by 
which  he  was  frequently  known  afterward.  To  adopt  the 
name  of  a  prominent  white  man  was,  by  the  Indians,  consid- 
ered a  high  compliment  and  a  bond  of  friendship. 

The  war  between  the  Tuscaroras  and  the  people  of  North 
Carolina,  commenced  in  September,  171 1,  was  still  raging  in 
the  summer  of  the  following  year.  The  Five  Nations  in  New 
York  became  restless  and  uneasy  ;  it  was  feared  by  the  Gov- 
ernor and  Assembly  that,  instigated  by  the  French,  the 
Northern  Iroquois  would  join  the  Southern,  and  embroil  the 
colonies  in  a  general  Indian  war." 

The  Five  Nations  informed  the  Governor  that  they  desired 
"to  interpose  amicably  in  the  matter."  Distrusting  their 
sincerity,  and  to  "  dissuade  them  from  this  fatal  design,"  by 

'  Marshe's  Journal. 
'  "  New  York  Colonial  History." 
II 


154  CHRISTOPHER   GISTS   JOURNALS. 

means  of  "presents  and  promises,"  the  Assembly  and  Gover- 
nor, in  June,  1712,  directed  Colonel  Peter  Schuyler  to  "pro- 
ceed to  the  Onondaga  Country  forthwith,  taking  with  you 
Laurence  Clause  the  Interpreter,  Mrs.  Montour  and  her  hus- 
band and  such  others  as  you  shall  see  fit." 

At  Onondaga  he  was  to  assemble  all  of  the  Indian  sachems 
who  could  be  got  together  for  a  conference  on  the  subject  of 
his  mission.  Any  fresh  "  Surmises  or  Jealousies  of  the  In- 
dians" were  to  be  overcome  by  his  "own  wisdom,  with  due 
regard  to  her  Majesty's  interest  and  honour  and  ye  quieting  ye 
minds  of  ye  Indians." 

The  complete  subjugation  of  the  Tuscaroras,  after  a  pro- 
tracted struggle  of  two  years'  duration,  removed  all  apprehen- 
sion of  trouble  with  the  Five  Nations.  In  the  year  1714  the 
Tuscaroras  migrated  north,  and  were  received  into  the  Iro- 
quois Confederacy  as  the  Sixth  Nation.' 

The  influence  of  Madame  Montour  among  the  Indians  was 
so  great,  and  adverse  to  the  French,  that  the  Governor  of 
Canada  repeatedly  endeavored  to  persuade  her  to  withdraw 
from  the  English  and  remove  to  his  Dominion,  offering  higher 
compensation  as  an  inducement,  but  without  success  until 
the  year  1719,  when  he  sent  her  sister  to  prevail  on  her  to 
remove  to  Canada.  Apprehensive  of  her  doing  so,  to  the 
injury  of  the  province  to  which  she  had  been  so  serviceable, 
the  Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs  sent  for  her  to  Albany, 
when  it  appeared  that  she  had  not  received  a  farthing  of  her 
stipulated  pay  for  twelve  months.  The  Commissioners  prom- 
ised that  she  should  receive  thereafter  "a  man's  pay  from  the 
proper  officer  of  the  four  Independent  Companies  posted  in 
the  Province,"'  and  the  business  was  thus  satisfactorily 
settled. 

1  Dr.  Hank's  "  History  of  North  Carolina." 
''  MS.,  Secretary  of  State's  office,  New  York. 


THE   MONTOURS.  IJS 

Madame  Montour  was  present  at  Philadelphia  in  July,  1727, 
as  interpreter,  at  a  conference  held  by  Governor  Gordon  with 
several  chiefs  of  the  Five  Nations.  Again,  in  October,  1728 ; 
her  husband,  Carondawana,  otherwise  Robert  Hunter,  was 
there  also.  She  retained  her  father's  name  after  marriage, 
and  was  usually  mentioned  as  "Mrs.  Montour,  a  French 
woman,  wife  to  Carondawana,  or  Robert  Hunter."  She  ap- 
pears to  have  lived  among  the  Miamis,  at  the  west  end  of 
Lake  Erie,  at  one  time  prior  to  1728.'  To  one  of  that  nation 
her  sister  was  married.  Her  residence  in  1734  was  at  the  vil- 
lage on  the  Susquehanna,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Loyalsock 
Creek,  on  the  West  side,  where  Montoursville,  Lycoming 
County,  Pennsylvania,  now  stands.  It  was  known  as  Otstu- 
ago,*  Ots-on-wacken,  or  French  Town. 

On  Evans'  Map  of  Pennsylvania,  of  1749,  the  village  is 
marked  "French  T.,"  and  the  creek,  the  "Ostuega."  There, 
in  March,  1737,  Conrad  Weiser,  Indian  agent  and  interpreter, 
on  his  way  to  Onondaga  with  a  message  from  the  President 
of  the  Council  of  Pennsylvania,  James  Logan,  lodged  at 
Madame  Montour's,  who,  he  states,  is  a  "  French  woman  by 
birth,  of  a  good  family,  but  now  in  mode  of  life  a  complete 
Indian."  She  treated  Weiser  and  his  companions  kindly, 
supplying  them  with  food,  although  she  had  but  little  to 
spare. 

In  the  fall  of  1742  Count  Zinzendorf,  the  Bishop  and  head 
of  the  Moravian  Church,  with  a  large  party,  and  among  them 
Conrad  Weiser,  visited  the  village  of  Oztenwacken,  where  he 
was  received  with  military  salutes  and  hospitably  welcomed 
by  Madame  Montour  and  her  son,  Andrew.  "  He  preached 
there  in  French  to  large  gatherings."  Madame  Montour  was 
deeply  affected  when  she   saw  Zinzendorf  and  learned  the 

' "  Colonial  Records." 

''  Otsteara,  "  Rock,'"  in  the  Iroquois  tongue. 


'4 


156  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

object  of  his  visit.  She  had  entirely  forgotten  the  truths  of 
the  Gospel,  and,  in  common  with  the  French  Indians,  believed 
the  story  originated  with  the  Jesuits,  that  the  Saviour's  birth- 
place was  in  France,  and  His  crucifiers  Englishmen.  Count 
Zinzendorf  appears  to  have  visited  Oztenwacken  subse- 
quently. 

In  June  and  July,  1744,  the  great  treaty  between  the  Six 
Nations  and  the  provinces  of  Pennsylvania,  Maryland  and  Vir- 
ginia was  held  at  Lancaster.  Madame  Montour  was  present 
with  two  of  her  daughters.  Witham  Marshe,  Secretary  to  the 
Maryland  Commissioners,  relates  in  his  journal  that  he  visited 
her  at  her  cabin  and  obtained  the  particulars  of  her  life.  She 
told  him  that  she  had  several  children  by  the  famous  war 
captain,  who  had  been  killed  in  the  war  with  the  Catawbas 
fifteen  years  previous,  that  since  she  had  not  married.'  Marshe 
describes  her  as  genteel,  of  polite  address,  and  had  been 
handsome.  Her  two  sons-in-law  and  only  son  were  away 
south,  to  war  against  the  Catawbas.  In  June,  1745,  Spangen- 
burgh,  Zeisberger,  and  other  missionaries  of  the  Moravians, 
accompanied  by  Conrad  Weiser  on  their  way  to  Onondaga, 
stopped  for  a  few  days  at  Shamokin  (now  Sunbury),  on  the 
Susquehanna.  They  visited  Madame  Montour,  who  was 
living  on  the  island  with  one  of  her  daughters.^  She  appears 
to  have  left  Oztenwacken  permanently,  as  there  is  no  evi- 
dence of  her  residing  there  afterwards.  Zeisberger  found 
that  village  deserted  and  in  ruins  in  1748.  The  smallpox  had 
desolated  the  valley.  There  is  no  further  direct  account  of 
Madame  Montour.  It  seems,  however,  that  she  was  not  living 
in  1754.  Some  time  prior  to  that  year  she  became  blind,  but 
was  sufficiently  vigorous  to  ride  on  horseback  from  Logstown, 
on  the  Ohio,  to  Venango  in  two  days,  a  distance  by  the  path 

'  Massachusetts  Historical  Society. 
'  Moravian  Historiral  Society. 


THE    MONTOURS.  157 

of  over  sixty  miles,  her  son  Andrew  on  foot,  leading  her  horse 
all  the  way.  Of  her  children  but  three  can  be  identified  with 
any  certainty  ;  one  of  the  two  daughters  who  were  with  her 
at  the  treaty  of  Lancaster  in  1744,  and  two  sons,  Andrew, 
alias  Henry,  and  Louis.  Her  daughter,  known  as  "  French 
Margaret,"  was  wife  to  Keterioncha,  alias  Peter  Quebec,  and 
living  near  Shamokin  when  Shikillimy  lived  there  in  1733, 
probably  on  the  island  where  Zeisberger  and  Spangenburgh 
visited  her  and  her  mother  in  1745,  as  before  related.  Another 
of  her  daughters  is  mentioned  as  a  sister  of  Andrew  Montour's, 
and  one  of  the  converts  at  the  Moravian  Mission,  at  New 
Salem,  Ohio,  April  14,  1791,  and  that  she  was  a  living  polyglot 
of  the  tongues  of  the  West,  speaking  English,  French  and 
six  Indian  languages.  She  must  have  been  at  least  seventy 
years  of  age  at  that  time. 

Madame  Montour  evidently  was  older  than  she  told  Marshe, 
at  Lancaster  in  1744,  as  she  was  at  Albany  in  171 1  as  Mrs. 
Montour — her  old  age  referred  to  in  1734  as  her  protection — 
and  blind  before  1754.'  "It  is  probable  that  she  was  captured 
prior  to  1696,  after  which  year  the  raids  of  the  Iroquois  into 
Canada  ceased  for  some  time.  That  she  was  very  young 
when  captured,  is  clear.  She  could  not  have  been  less  than 
sixty  years  old  at  the  time  of  the  treaty  of  Lancaster  in  1744, 
and  probably  was  older,  and  if  but  ten  years  of  age  when 
taken,  as  she  said,  the  year  of  her  captivity  was  1694,  and  of 
her  birth  1684.  Of  the  many  errors  respecting  this  noted 
woman,  the  most  prominent  are,  first,  the  frequently  repeated 
statement  that  she  was  the  daughter  of  a  former  governor  of 
Canada."  "  This  story  originated  with  herself,  or  it  may  have 
been  told  by  her  savage  captors  to  enhance  the  value  of  their 
prize.     There  never  was  a  governor  of  Canada  named  Mon- 

'  Dussieux,  Canada. 
'  Marshe's  Journal. 


I  58  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

tour,  and  the  letter  of  Lord  Cornbury,  of  August  20,  1708, 
before  cited,  is  conclusive  as  to  her  origin,  taken,  of  course, 
in  connection  with  her  own  statement  to  Secretary  Marshe. 
Second,  that  she  was  living  at  the  time  of  the  American 
Revolution,  and  also  confounding  her  with  her  granddaughter, 
Catherine  of  Catherine's  Town,  near  the  head  of  Seneca 
Lake,  New  York,  destroyed  by  the  army  under  General 
Sullivan  in  1779.  She  is  not  mentioned  in  any  work  of 
original  authority,  as  Catherine,  but  invariably  as  Mrs.  or 
"Madame  Montour."  Highly  colored  accounts  have  been 
given  respecting  her  association  with  the  ladies  of  Phila- 
delphia, who  evidently,  owing  to  her  intelligence  and  previous 
history,  treated  her  with  considerate  kindness  and  nothing 
more.  From  the  authorities  of  the  province  she  received 
such  presents  and  compensation  for  services  as  were  usually 
given  to  prominent  Indian  visitors.  Those  who  knew  her 
best,  related  that  she  was  habited  and  lived  like  the  Indians.' 
Her  French  blood  doubtless  imparted  a  vivacity  of  manner 
to  her,  the  like  of  which  is  observed  at  this  day  among  the 
people  of  mixed  French  and  Indian  ancestry  in  Canada  and 
along  our  northern  frontier. 

'  Colonial  Records. 


ANDREW  MONTOUR. 


Andrew  Montour,  eldest  son  of  Madame  Montour,  first 
appears  as  captain  of  a  party  of  Iroquois  warriors  marching 
against  the  Catawbas  of  Carolina  in  1744.  He  fell  sick  on 
his  way  to  James  River  and  was  obliged  to  return  toShamokin.' 
In  May,  1745,  he  accompanied  Weiser  and  the  Chief  Shich- 
illany  to  Onondaga  with  a  message  and  instructions  from  the 
Governor  of  Pennsylvania,  to  induce  the  Six  Nations  to  send 
deputies  to  a  Peace  Conference  with  the  Catawbas  at  Wil- 
liamsburgh,  Virginia ;  also  to  urge  them  to  compel  the  Shaw- 
nese,  with  Peter  Chart  ier  at  their  head,  to  make  restitution 
for  the  robbery  of  Pennsylvania  traders,  incited  thereto  by 
the  French.'  In  June,  1748,  he  was  introduced  by  Weiser  to 
the  President  and  Council  of  the  Province  at  Philadelphia, 
and  highly  commended  as  "faithful  and  prudent;"  "lives 
amongst  the  Six  Nations  between  the  branches  of  the  Ohio 
and  Lake  Erie."  * 

In  July,  following,  he  was  interpreter  at  a  Treaty  at  Lan- 
caster, between  the  Provincial  Authorities  and  the  Six  Nations, 
Shawnese,  Miamis,  etc.*  In  August,  1748,  he  accompanied 
Weiser  on  his  mission  to  Logstown.  In  May,  1750,  arrived  at 
George  Croghan's  House  at  Pennsboro,  Cumberland  County, 
from  Allegheny,  and  joins  in  the  Conference  held  on  the  17th 
with  some  Six  Nation  and  Conestoga  Chiefs. 

'  Marshe's  Journal,  Vol  VII.    Letter  of  C.  Weiser  to  James  Logan. 

''  Colonial  Records,  Vol.  IV,  p.  778. 

'  Colonial  Records,  V^ol.  V,  p.  290. 

*  Colonial  Records,  Vol.  V,  p.  307.,  id.,  p.  349. 

(«S9) 


l60  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

Governor  Hamilton  recommended  him  to  the  Assembly  as 
a  discreet  person  of  influence  with  the  Indians  in  keeping  the 
French  from  alienating  them  from  the  British  and  deserving 
of  recompense,  to  which  the  Assembly  assented.  He  re- 
ceived £(j2  1 5 J.  On  September  20,  a  message  to  the  Governor 
from  the  Miamis  and  Hurons  was  delivered  to  Secretary 
Peters  by  Andrew  Montour.  The  Assembly  having  voted  a 
present  of  ;^ioo  to  be  given  to  the  Twigtwees  (Miami)  Indians, 
the  Governor  directed  Croghan  and  Montour  to  hasten  to 
Ohio  with  it,  which  he  called  a  small  present ;  but  they  were 
both  sick  and  therefore  detained.  Before  they  were  able  to 
start  on  their  journey  news  came  of  active  French  movements 
and  of  their  capturing  two  English  traders,  Turner  and  Kil- 
gore,  in  the  Ohio  country,  and  also  of  the  death  of  Con- 
estoga,  the  great  Chief  of  the  Six  Nations,  an  Onondaga  and 
firm  friend  of  the  English,  while  his  successor  was  strong  in 
the  French  interest  and  a  Roman  Catholic.  Therefore,  the 
Governor  gave  orders  to  Croghan  and  Montour  to  stay  until 
he  should  learn  the  resolution  of  the  Assembly,  to  whom  he 
communicated  the  alarming  information.  That  body  re- 
sponded by  voting  ;^ioo  as  a  present  of  condolence  to  the  Six 
Nations  on  the  death  of  Conestoga,  ;^ioo  more  to  be  given 
to  the  Miamis,  and  ;^500  "to  the  natives  at  Ohio"  in  suitable 
goods  and  to  be  sent  as  soon  as  possible. 

Croghan  and  Montour  set  out  on  their  journey,  arriving  at 
Logstown  on  the  Ohio  on  November  15.  Of  course,  they 
took  no  goods  for  the  present  ;  they  were  yet  to  be  purchased 
and  the  Indians  to  be  notified  to  assemble  to  receive  them. 

Not  later  than  March  Croghan  arrived  and  wrote  that  the 
French,  under  Jean  Coeur,  had  five  canoe  loads  of  goods  up 
the  Allegheny,  and  was,  the  Indians  said,  very  generous  in 
making  presents  to  all  the  chiefs  he  met  with.  At  Logstown 
they  found  thirty  warriors  of  the  Six  Nations  on  their  way  to 


ANDREW    MONTOUR.  l6l 

war  with  the  Catawbas.  But  few  of  the  chiefs  of  the  Indians 
were  seen,  being  absent  hunting.  He  further  wrote  to  the 
Governor  that  "  Montour  takes  a  great  deal  of  pains  to  pro- 
mote the  English  interest  among  the  Indians,  and  has  great 
sway  among  all  those  nations."  The  Indian  goods  were  pur- 
chased ;  the  transportation  to  the  Ohio  cost  ;^230 — very 
costly — but  it  could  not  be  done  for  less,  as  the  Governor  in- 
formed the  Assembly.  Pack-horses  then,  and  for  near  half  a 
century  afterward,  were  the  only  means  of  transportation. 

Croghan  and  Montour  proceeded  on  to  the  Muskingum 
River,  where,  at  a  large  Wyandot  town  (near  the  site  of  the 
present  Coshocton,  Ohio)  Croghan  had  a  trading  house.  Here 
they  remained  some  weeks  and  were  joined  by  Christopher 
Gist,  the  agent  of  the  Ohio  Company  of  Virginia.  Croghan 
and  Montour  held  frequent  councils  with  the  Indians,  deliver- 
ing the  message  from  the  Governor  of  Pennsylvania  promising 
the  presents  to  be  delivered  in  the  Spring  at  Logstown.  They 
proceeded  to  the  Shawnee  towns  at  the  mouth  of  the  Scioto, 
and  also  on  the  south,  or  Kentucky,  side  of  the  Ohio,  where, 
at  a  Council  with  the  Shawnese,  Croghan  delivered  speeches 
from  the  Governor  of  Pennsylvania  to  the  chiefs  of  the  nation 
and  informed  them  that  the  escaped  traders  who  had  been  in 
prisons  of  the  French,  brought  news  that  the  French  had  of- 
fered a  large  reward  for  Montour  and  himself  if  alive,  or  for 
their  scalps  if  dead.  Montour  also  informed  them,  as  he  had 
done  the  Wyandots  and  Delawares ,  that  the  King  of  Great 
Britain  had  sent  them  a  large  present  of  goods.' 

Montour  was  called  by  the  French,  a  French  Canadian  de- 
serter. Croghan,  Montour,  Gist  and  Robert  Callender  then 
proceeded  to  Pickawillamy,  chief  town  of  the  Miamis.'  It  was 
situated  on  the  Big  Miami.     Among  other  proceedings,  Cro- 

'  "  Conduct  of  the  Ministry." 
^  "  Conduct  of  the  Ministry." 


l62  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

ghan  presented  them  with  a  gift  of  the  value  of  i'loo.  Mon- 
tour delivered  them  a  message  from  the  Wyandots  and  Dela- 
wares.  On  March  3  Gist  left  them  for  the  lower  Shawnee 
Town,  while  they  took  the  path  to  Hockhocking. 

While  at  the  Miami  Town,  articles  for  a  treaty  of  peace  and 
alliance  were  entered  into  between  the  English  and  Miamis, 
drawn  up  by  Gist,  signed,  sealed  and  delivered  on  both  sides.' 

Conrad  Weiser  was  selected  to  deliver  the  goods  at  Logs- 
town,  but  declined,  and,  highly  recommending  Croghan  and 
Montour  as  every  way  qualified,  the  Governor  appointed  them 
to  transact  the  business.     The  goods  were  valued  at  ;£'7oo. 

When  Croghan  reported  the  matter  of  the  treaty  of  peace 
and  alliance  made  with  the  Miamis,  he  said  it  was  done  at  the 
request  of  the  Indians,  he  consenting  rather  than  discharge 
them  at  so  critical  a  time.  The  Governor  reproved  him  for 
acting  in  public  matters  without  authority,  but  received  it  and 
ordered  its  entry  on  the  Books  of  Minutes. 

On  May  18,  1751,  Montour  and  Croghan  arrived  at  Logs- 
town  with  the  promised  presents  for  the  Indians,  of  whom  a 
great  number  were  assembled— Six  Nations,  Delawares  and 
Shawanese.  They  welcomed  the  messengers  by  firing  guns 
and  raising  the  English  colors.  Two  days  afterward  Jean 
Coeur,  with  one  other  Frenchman  and  forty  Six  Nation  war- 
riors, arrived  from  the  head  of  the  Ohio.  Jean  Coeur  held  a 
council  with  all  the  Indians  in  the  town  on  the  following  day, 
and  urged  them  to  turn  away  all  the  English  traders  from 
their  country,  otherwise  they  would  be  visited  with  the  dis- 
pleasure of  the  Governor  of  Canada.^  To  which  a  Six  Nation 
chief  directly  replied,  emphatically  refusing  the  proposition  of 
the  French.  On  the  27th  Croghan  and  Montour  held  a  con- 
ference with  the  chiefs  of  the  Six  Nations,  and  agreed  upon 

' "  Colonial  Records." 

^  "  Virginia  State  Papers,"  p.  245. 


ANDREW   MONTOUR.  I63 

the  speeches  to  make  the  day  following  to  the  Delawares, 
Miamis,  Wyandots  and  Shawanese,  when  the  promised  pres- 
ents were  to  be  delivered.  Accordingly,  on  the  28th,  the 
treaty  was  held;  George  Croghan  delivered  the  speeches; 
Andrew  Montour  acted  as  interpreter  for  Pennsylvania.  Some 
ten  traders  were  present.  The  Beaver,  of  the  Delawares,  and 
chiefs  of  other  tribes  responded,  among  other  things  saying 
they  hoped  "our  brother  would  build  a  strong-house  on  the 
River  Ohio,"  that,  in  case  of  war,  a  place  of  security  might  be 
ready. 

Croghan  and  Montour  left  on  the  30th.  On  his  arrival  at 
Pennsboro,  Croghan  wrote  to  the  Governor,  sending  a  copy  of 
the  treaty,  with  an  account  of  the  proceedings.  All,  he  said, 
had  been  conducted  to  the  great  satisfaction  of  the  Indians. 
Mr.  Montour,  he  wrote,  had  exerted  himself  very  much  on  this 
occasion.  "  He  is  very  capable  of  doing  business,  and  is 
looked  upon  by  all  the  Indians  as  one  of  their  chiefs."  He 
adds  that,  as  Andrew  has  devoted  all  his  time  to  the  business, 
he  hopes  the  Governor  will  recommend  him  to  the  Assembly 
for  proper  recompense,  and  that  "  Mr.  Montour  is  now  at  my 
house  and  will  wait  on  you  when  a  time  is  appointed." 

In  communicating  the  account  of  the  proceedings  of  Cro- 
ghan and  Montour  to  the  Assembly,  the  Governor  said  Mr. 
Montour  was  in  town  by  his  orders,  to  receive  a  recompense 
for  his  services,  and  that  he  must  do  him  the  justice  to  say 
that  it  appears  he  has  well  performed  the  business  entrusted 
to  him,  and  hopes  the  Assembly  will  pay  him  to  his  satisfac- 
tion.    Montour  was  paid  ;^8o  in  full  for  his  services. 

Montour,  being  very  desirous  of  living  "over  the  Blue 
Hills,"  had  often  applied  to  the  Governor  for  permission, 
which  was  given  after  a  good  deal  of  consideration  and  con- 
sultation with  Mr.  Weiser  and  Mr.  Peters.'     It  was  thought 

'  "  Colonial  Records." 


164  CHRISTOPHER   GIST'S   JOURNALS. 

proper,  as  numbers  had  lately  gone  to  settle  there,  and  others 
were  daily  crowding  into  those  parts,  that  Andrew  Montour 
should  be  furnished  with  a  commission  under  the  Lesser  Seal 
to  go  and  reside  there,  in  order  to  prevent  others  from  settling 
or  from  dealing  with  the  Indians  for  their  consent  to  settle. 
Montour  was  granted  a  commission  under  the  Lesser  Seal  to 
go  and  reside  over  the  Kittochtinny  Hills,  at  such  place  as  he 
might  judge  most  central  and  convenient.  His  duty  was  to 
warn  all  settlers  off  and  report  them  to  the  Governor.  The 
place  fixed  upon  by  Montour  was  at  the  mouth  of  the  stream 
called  Montour's  Run,  in  the  present  Perry  County.  On  the 
same  day  that  Montour  received  his  commission  he  waited  on 
the  Governor,  and  requested  permission  to  interpret  for  the 
Governor  of  Virginia  at  the  ensuing  treaty,  to  be  held  at 
Logstown,  on  the  Ohio.  The  leave  was  granted,  together 
with  a  kind  message  from  the  Governor,  to  be  delivered  to  the 
Indians  at  Ohio. 

In  May  following,  the  Commissioners  of  Virginia — Joshua 
Fry,  L.  Lomax  and  James  Pattin — held  a  treaty  with  the 
Indians  at  Logstown.  Christopher  Gist,  George  Croghan 
and  Andrew  Montour  were  present,  the  latter  as  interpreter. 
The  object  of  the  treaty  was  to  obtain  from  the  Indians,  if 
possible,  a  confirmation  of  the  treaty  of  Lancaster  of  1744,  by 
which,  the  Virginians  claimed,  the  Indians  had  ceded  to  the 
King  of  Great  Britain  the  right  to  all  the  lands  in  the  colony 
of  Virginia.* 

The  Indians  afterwards  hearing  the  construction  put  upon 
this  deed,  disowned  it,  and  it  was  the  object  of  the  Confer- 
ence at  Logstown  to  have  the  treaty  explained  and  their 
objections  removed.  In  a  private  Conference  held  on  the 
9th  of  June,  with  the  Half  King  and  the  other  chiefs,  they 
acknowledged  themselves  satisfied.     For  Montour's  services 

'  "  Plain  Facts,"  pp.  38-42. 


ANDREW    MONTOUR.  16$ 

in  this  transaction,  the  Ohio  company,  at  a  meeting  at  Alex- 
andria, September,  1752,  resolved  "to  allow  him  thirty  pistoles 
for  his  trouble  at  Logstown,  in  May  last,  on  account  of  the 
company,  and  that  if  he  will  remove  to  Virginia  and  settle 
on  the  company's  lands,  and  use  his  interest  with  the  Indians 
to  encourage  and  forward  our  settlements,  that  the  company 
will  make  him  a  present  of  one  thousand  acres  of  land  to  live 
on,  and  will  make  him  a  legal  title  for  the  same." ' 

In  1753,  the  Six  Nations  of  Ohio  chose  him  as  one  of  their 
counsellors,  and  observed  all  the  ceremonious  forms  usual  on 
admitting  members  of  council.  He  visited  Onondaga  early 
this  year,  1753,  by  request  of  the  Governor  of  Virginia,  to 
invite  the  Six  Nations  to  send  a  deputation  to  a  treaty  to  be 
held  at  Winchester.  He  returned,  and  being  in  Philadelphia, 
informed  Secretary  Peters  that  the  Six  Nations  were  averse 
to  either  the  French  or  English  settling  or  building  forts  at 
Ohio,  and  wished  them  to  quit  their  country.  He  said  he 
was  going  a  second  time  to  Onondaga  by  request  of  the  Gov- 
ernor of  Virginia  and  Mr.  Peters.  In  August,  1753,  Montour 
was  with  Captain  William  Trent,  at  the  forks  of  the  Ohio, 
when  Captain  Trent  viewed  the  ground,  selecting  the  spot 
on  which  to  build  the  fort.  "Captain  Trent  and  French 
Andrew,  the  heads  of  the  Five  Nations,  the  Picts,  the  Shaw- 
anese,  the  Owendats,  and  the  Delawares,  for  Virginia,"  writes 
John  Frazer,  Indian  trader,  then  residing  at  Turtle  Creek, 
near  the  ground  to  become  so  famous  two  years  later  as  "Brad- 
dock's  Fields."  In  September  a  treaty  was  held  at  Win- 
chester, Virginia,  between  Col.  Fairfax  and  Chiefs  of  the  Six 
Nations.  Lord  Thomas  Fairfax  was  present  the  first  day, 
when  the  Indians,  over  eighty  in  number,  were  received  with 
considerable  ceremony.  Col.  Gist,  William  Trent  and  George 
Croghan  were  present.     Andrew  Montour  was  interpreter, 

'  "Colonial  Records." 


l66  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

and  also  efficient  in  arranging  the  business.'  The  Indians,  by 
the  Half  King,  Scarrooyady,  declaring  that  they  took  back  the 
consent  they  had  given  at  Logstown,  in  May,  to  any  settle- 
ment of  their  country,  but  they  desired  a  strong  house  to 
store  goods  in.  The  Virginia  authorities  promised  the  Indians 
to  supply  them  with  ammunition  to  defend  themselves  against 
the  French.  George  Croghan,  William  Trent  and  Andrew 
Montour  were  appointed  to  distribute  it  at  the  Ohio.  After 
the  close  of  the  Conference  at  Winchester,  the  Indians  took 
their  way  to  Carlisle,  where  they  met  the  Commissioners  of 
Pennsylvania,  Mr.  Peters,  Isaac  Morris  and  Benjamin  Frank- 
lin, and  held  a  conference  with  them,  having  been  encouraged 
to  make  the  visit  by  the  frequent  solicitations  of  Andrew  Mon- 
tour.* The  Conference  at  Carlisle  lasted  four  days,  with  the 
usual  ceremonies ;  the  Indians  repeated  their  determination 
given  at  Winchester,  respecting  keeping  settlements  from  ex- 
tending west  of  the  mountains,  and  as  to  the  strong  house 
which  the  Governor  of  Virginia  intends  to  build  on  the  Ohio, 
they  thought  that  intention  occasioned  the  Governor  of 
Canada  to  invade  their  country,  but  as  soon  as  they  knew  his 
intention,  "  as  he  speaks  with  two  tongues,  they  (the  Indians) 
well  know  what  to  do;"  evidently  they  were  unsettled  in 
their  minds  respecting  the  "strong  house,"  but  as  to  settle- 
ments west  of  the  Allegheny  hills,  there  could  be  no  doubt 
they  were  decidedly  opposed  to  it.  Towards  the  close  of  the 
Conference  Scarrooyady,  the  Oneida  chief,  said  it  was  with  a 
great  deal  of  pleasure  he  informed  them  "that  you  may 
believe  that  what  Andrew  Montour  says  to  be  true  between 
the  Six  Nations  and  you,  they  have  made  him  one  of  their 
counsellors  and  a  great  man  among  them  and  love  him  dearly." 
Scarrooyady  gave  a  large  belt  to  Andrew  Montour,  and  the 

>  "Plain  Facts."( 

^  Report  of  Commission. 


ANDREW    MONTOUR.  I67 

Commissioners  agreed  to  it.  In  January,  Montour  was  at 
Shannopin's  Town  and  Logstown  with  Croghan  and  James 
Pattin,  where,  between  the  drunkenness  of  the  Indians  and 
the  presence  of  a  detachment  of  French  soldiers,  with  whom 
they  had  high  words,  their  situation  was  dangerous.  In 
February,  Montour  was  at  Philadelphia  and  underwent  a  close 
examination  by  the  Governor  and  Committee  of  Assembly 
relative  to  the  location  of  Shannopin,  Logstown  and  Venango. 

1754. — George  Washington,  having  sent  for  Montour  to 
meet  him  at  Ohio,  the  latter  wrote  to  Secretary  Peters,  from 
his  residence  on  Sherman's  Creek,  on  the  i6th  of  May,  1754, 
urging  the  immediate  necessity  of  Pennsylvania  sending  men 
and  arms  to  join  the  Indian  Allies,  to  resist  the  impending 
French  invasion.  Ward  had  surrendered  the  little  fort  at 
the  Forks  of  the  Ohio,  on  the  17th  of  April,  to  Contrecceur. 
Croghan  and  Montour  proceeded  to  the  Monongahela,  and 
there  on  the  9th  of  June  found  Washington  ;  and  Montour 
was  with  him  at  his  surrender  of  Fort  Necessity,  July  3, 
1754.  He  had  a  company  under  Washington,  of  both  Whites 
and  Indians.  On  the  21st  of  July,  Montour  wrote  to  the 
Governor  of  Pennsylvania,  from  Winchester,  saying  that  the 
Half  King  and  Monakatootha,  with  a  body  of  Six  Nations,* 
had  gone  to  Aucquick  to  settle,  where  the  other  Indians,  as 
fast  as  they  can  get  off  from  the  French,  are  to  join  them ; 
and  as  there  is  a  large  body  of  them  and  no  ground  there  to 
hunt  to  support  their  families,  they  expect  the  Governor  to 
provide  for  their  families,  as  their  men  will  be  engaged  in  the 
war.  On  August  31st  he  met  Weiser  at  Harris'  Ferry,  on 
his  way  to  a  great  meeting  at  Aucquick. 

1755. — During  the  campaign  of  Braddock,  that  General 
wrote,  on  May  20,  to  Governor  Morris,  that  he  had  engaged 
between  forty  and  fifty  Indians  from  the  frontier  of  the  pro- 

'  "  Colonial  Records." 


l68  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

vince,  to  go  over  the  mountains,  and  would  take  Croghan  and 
Montour  into  service.'  Montour  was  at  Philadelphia  on  the  8th 
of  August,  acting  as  interpreter  with  Weiser  and  a  few  Indians, 
who  had  been  in  the  fatal  defeat  of  Braddock.  Scarroyady 
commented,  with  great  severity,  on  the  pride  and  ignorance 
of  the  great  English  General.  On  the  French  and  Indian 
invasion  of  the  settlements,  in  1755,  after  Braddock's  defeat, 
Montour  was  active  and  zealous  in  gaining  intelligence  of 
their  movements! 

He  was  at  Shannopin,  with  Scarroyady,  in  October,  and 
warned  John  Harris  of  his  great  danger;  "there  were  forty 
Indians  out  many  days,  and  intended  to  burn  my  house, 
and  destroy  myself  and  family."  At  Shamokin,''  "painted  as 
the  rest "  of  the  Indians,  he  warned  the  inhabitants,  that  an 
attack  might  very  soon  be  expected.  He  had  been  at  the 
Big  Island,  with  Manoquetotha,  at  the  request  of  the  Dela- 
wares. 

1756. — Andrew  Montour,  with  Scarroyady,  one  of  the  chiefs 
of  the  Oneida  Nation,  was  sent  on  a  mission,  to  the  Six 
Nations,  by  Governor  Morris.  They  passed  up  the  Susque- 
hanna, to  Onondaga  ;  on  their  way,  while  among  the  hostile 
Delawares,  their  lives  were  in  great  danger.  Montour  and 
Scarroyady  met  the  Provincial  Council,  in  their  chamber  in 
Philadelphia,  on  March  27th,  when  they  made  full  report  of 
their  mission  to  the  Six  Nations.  They  had  been  present  at 
Fort  Johnston,  at  a  conference  held  with  the  Six  Nation 
chiefs,  and  Sir  William  Johnston,  February,  1756.  The  chiefs 
expressed  great  resentment  at  the  conduct  of  the  Delawares, 
etc.  The  Council  decided  to  offer  rewards  for  Indian  scalps. 
The  Provincial  Assembly  highly  commended  the  conduct  of 
Montour  and  Scarroyady. 

'  "  Colonial  Records." 

*  Shamokin  is  at  the  Forks  of  the  Susquehanna,  on  the  east  side. 


ANDREW   MONTOUR.  I69 

On  the  19th  to  the  2ist  of  April  a  conference  was  held  at 
Philadelphia,  at  the  house  of  Israel  Pemberton,  between  the 
Quakers  of  Philadelphia  and  the  heads  of  the  Six  Nations. 
Weiser  and  Montour  were  interpreters.  On  the  20th  the 
Indians  had  a  long  conference  with  the  Governor.  "They 
put  Andrew  Montour's  children  under  his  care ;  as  well  the 
three  that  are  here,  to  be  independent  of  the  mother,  as  a  boy 
of  twelve  years  old,  that  he  had  by  a  former  wife,  a  Delaware, 
a  grand-daughter  of  Allompis."  They  added  that  he  had  a 
girl  among  the  Delawares  called  Kayodaghscroony,  or  Made- 
lina,  and  desired  she  might  be  distinguished,  enquired  after, 
and  sent  for,  which  was  promised.  John  Montour's  name 
(one  of  Andrew's  children,  in  the  care  of  the  Province)  appears 
in  the  "  Items  of  Accounts,  votes  of  Assembly,"  1758,  p.  75  ; 
this  boy  was  the  same,  afterwards  living  on,  and  claiming  the 
Island,  near  Pittsburgh,  now  Neville ;  possibly  the  same  who 
died  in  1830. 

On  May  loth,  Montour  was  interpreter,  at  a  meeting  at 
Fort  Johnston,  between  Scarroyady  and  other  Oneida  chiefs, 
and  Sir  Wm.  Johnston.  In  June,  he  was  at  the  camp  on 
Lake  Onondaga,  as  interpreter. 

On  the  2Sth  of  July  Sir  William  Johnston  held  a  confer- 
ence, at  Fort  Johnston,  with  the  chiefs  of  the  Six  Nations, 
Shawnese,  Delawares,  Mohickons,  etc.  After  the  usual  cere- 
monies, he  told  them,  that  as  Lord  Loudon,  the  new 
Commander-in-Chief,  had  not  arrived,  he  would  have  some 
Six  Nation  warriors  go  to  Canada,  to  try  whether  the  edge 
of  the  hatchet  he  sharpened  at  Onondaga  would  cut.  Some 
chiefs  sang  the  war  song.  Montour  was  appointed  the  captain 
of  a  party  of  Indians.  He  rose  up  and  sang  his  war  song. 
Some  warriors  joined  his  party,  and  the  war  dance  was 
danced."     Some  of  these  warriors,  forty-eight   in   number, 

'  "  New  York  Colonial  History." 


170  CHRISTOPHER    GIST'S    JOURNALS. 

indulging  too  freely  in  rum,  squandered  all  of  their  outfit. 
Scarroyady  and  Montour  came  to  the  council  room,  at  Fort 
Johnston,  on  the  14th  of  August,  and  Sir  William  Johnston, 
for  the  second  time,  fitted  them  out  with  arms  and  clothes, 
in  place  of  those  they  had  sold  to  some  River  Indians  and 
Tuscarawas.  News  having  arrived  of  the  capture  of  Oswego, 
by  Montcalm's  army.  Sir  Wm.  Johnston  spoke  to  the  two 
war  parties,  and  desired  them  to  march  to  General  Webb's 
rendezvous,  at  the  Oneida  carrying  place.  August  26th  that 
General,  however,  beat  a  rapid  retreat  to  the  Flats.  On  the 
lOth  of  September,  Montour  appears  as  interpreter  at  Fort 
Johnston.  On  the  20th  of  September  Sir  Wm.  Johnston, 
with  all  the  Indians  he  could  gather,  with  Croghan  and  Mon- 
tour, marched  to  the  relief  of  the  army  besieged  at  Fort  Ed- 
ward. He  was  ordered  back  by  General  Webb,  and  reached 
Fort  Johnston  on  the  2d  of  November. 

1757. — At  Fort  Johnston,  on  the  12th  of  September, 
Andrew  Montour  appears  as  interpreter  at  a  meeting  of  Sir 
William  Johnston,  a  few  Mohican  and  Seneca  chiefs  and  four 
Cherokee  Indians.'  "Sir  William  lighted  the  Calumet  of 
Peace,  and  after  smoking  a  whiff,  passed  it  to  the  Cherokee 
Deputies,  holding  it  to  them  while  each  drew  a  whiff,"  and 
then  Mr.  Montour,  "handed  it  round  to  every  Indian  present." 
After  delivering  belts  and  long  speeches,  etc.,  at  several 
meetings,  they  left  on  the  20th.  In  November  Croghan  and 
Montour  were  despatched  to  the  German  Flats,  by  Sir  Wm. 
Johnston,  to  call  upon  the  Oneidas  there,  to  explain  why  they 
had  not  given  warning  of  the  raid  and  massacre,  shortly  be- 
fore committed  by  the  French  and  their  Indian  allies,  on  the 
German  inhabitants.  They  met  the  Oneida  Sachems,  at 
Fort  Harkimer,  on  the  30th  November;  they  held  a  confer- 
ence with  some  Germans  and  returned  as  reported.^ 

1  "New  York  Colonial  History,"  Vol.  VII. 
•'  "Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  VIII,  1758. 


ANDREW   MONTOUR.  I7I 

In  October,  at  Easton,  was  held  a  great  conference  between 
Governor  Denny,  the  Provincial  Council,  Committee  from 
the  Assembly,  and  Indians  of  the  Six  Nations.  Croghan  as 
Deputy  Agent  for  Indian  Affairs,  Weiser  as  Provincial  In- 
terpreter, Montour  as  Interpreter  for  the  Six  Nations  and 
Delawares.  October  21,  Montour,  Croghan  and  others  signed, 
as  witnesses,  the  Deed  of  Confirmation  for  Lands.  The 
treaty  closed  on  the  25th  ;  it  was  very  important,  as  General 
Forbes  was  then  moving  near  to  Fort  Du  Quesne,  and  a  great 
object  was  to  soothe  the  Indians,  by  presents,  and  to  settle 
the  complaints  of  the  Delawares,  respecting  their  lands. 
Immediately  after  the  close  of  the  last  Treaty  at  Easton, 
Montour  and  Croghan  left  for  the  Ohio,  where,  at  Saukon,  the 
Indian  village  at  the  mouth  of  the  Beaver,  on  the  29th  of 
November,  they  met  Christian  Fred.  Post,  who  had  just  come 
down  the  creek  from  Kuskuskis.'  At  Saukon  they  met  and 
conferred  with  King  Beaver,  his  brother,  Shingiss,  and  the 
chiefs  and  warriors,  respecting  General  Forbes'  message  to 
them;  that  General,  with  the  army,  was  now  at  Fort  Du- 
Quesne,  having  captured  it  on  the  24th. 

On  December  3d  they  reached  Logstown,  and  on  the  3d 
the  island,  since  known  as  Killbuck  or  Smoky  Island,  opposite 
Pittsburgh,  where  they  encamped.  On  the  4th  they  got  over 
late,  there  was  snow,  and  the  river  running  with  ice.  Croghan, 
Montour,  and  Col.  John  Armstrong  held  conference  with  Col. 
Bouquet,  the  Indians,  etc' 

On  the  5th,  Post  seems  to  have  had  an  altercation  with 
Croghan  and  Montour,  relative  to  the  Indians'  talk.  On  Feb- 
ruary 8th,  1759,  Secretary  Peters,  at  the  request  of  General 
Forbes,  held  a  conference  at  Philadelphia  with  the  Six  Nation 
Chiefs  and  other  Indians  from  Bowlunee,  on  the  Upper 
Allegheny,  Andrew  Montour,  interpreter.     On  the  20th  he 

'  "  Post's  Second  Journal,  1758." 
'  "  Pennsylvania  Archives,"  1759. 


172  CHRISTOPHER    GIST  S    JOURNALS. 

informed  the  Secretary  that  the  Indians  were  dissatisfied. 
They  said  it  was  absolutely  necessary  Andrew  should  return 
to  Ohio  with  them,  but  he  told  them  he  was  an  officer,  subject 
to  the  General,  and  could  not  go  without  written  orders  from 
him.' 

These  Indians  wished  to  know  the  intentions  of  the  Eng- 
lish, and  what  was  done  at  the  Easton  Treaty,  etc.  In  July  a 
great  conference  with  all  the  Indian  tribes  of  the  Ohio  was 
held  at  Pittsburgh,  by  George  Croghan,  Deputy  Agent,  Col. 
Hugh  Mercer,  commanding  Fort  Pitt,  Captain  William  Trent, 
Captain  Thomas  McKee,^  Captain  Henry ;  Montour,  inter- 
preter. It  lasted  from  July  4th  to  nth,  1759.  King  Beaver 
was  the  principal  speaker  of  the  Indians.  Guyasuta  (Kiashuta), 
was  present. 

Another  conference  was  held  at  Pittsburgh,  on  October 
24th,  between  General  Stanwix,  the  officers,  George  Croghan, 
William  Trent,  McKee,  Captain  Henry,  Montour  interpreter. 
Six  Nations,  Shawanese,  Wyandots,  Miamis,  and  Delawares. 
Captain  Montour  lit  the  Pipe  of  Peace  left  here  by  the 
warriors  of  the  Ottawas,  handing  it  to  General  Stanwix  and 
the  other  officers  of  the  army,  and  Indians,  to  smoke,  then 
acquainted  the  Indians  by  whom  the  pipe  was  left,  and  upon 
what  occasion,  showing  them  the  belts  left  at  the  same  time. 
At  the  camp  before  Pittsburgh  General  Moncton  held  a  con- 
ference with  the  Western  Indians  on  August  X2th,  1760,' 
Captain  Andrew  Montour,  interpreter,  George  Croghan, 
Deputy  Agent. 

On  September  4th  Montour  arrived  at  Presqu'  Isle  with 
Shingiss.''     Canada  having  capitulated,  an   expedition   was 

'  "  Colonial  Records." 

^  For  many  years  Chief  Indian  Trader  on  tlie  Susquehanna.     He  built 
Fort  McKee.    Alexander  McKee  was  his  son. 
■'  "  Pennsylvania  Archives,"  1760. 
*  Massachusetts  Historical  Society. 


ANDREW  MONTOUR.  173 

fitted  out  to  take  possession  of  the  different  French  posts  on 
the  lakes,  Detroit,  etc.  On  November  4th  the  Flotilla,  of 
nineteen  whale-boats  and  batteaux,  sailed.  The  shore  party 
consisted  of  forty-two  Rangers,  fifteen  Royal  Americans,  and 
twenty  Indians,  Six  Nations,  Shawanese  and  Delawares, 
under  the  command  of  Captain  Montour,  the  shore  party 
commanded  by  Captain  Brewer,  the  whole  land  and  water 
forces  under  Major  Robert  Rogers.  Croghan  commanded  one 
of  the  boats.  Detroit  was  surrendered,  after  some  parley,  on 
November  29th.' 

On  December  8th  Major  Rogers  and  Captain  Montour, 
with  a  party  of  Indians  set  off  to  take  possession  of  Mackinaw. 
After  proceeding  on  their  voyage  about  ninety  miles  to  a 
point  on  the  west  side  of  Lake  Huron,  they  found  it  im-  • 
possible  to  get  through  the  ice.  To  go  by  land  the  Indians 
declared  was  impossible  without  snow-shoes,  so  much  to 
Rogers'  mortification  they  returned,  reaching  Detroit  on  the 

2ISt. 

On  May  22d,  1761,  at  a  conference  held  at  the  State  House, 
Philadelphia,  between  the  Governor  and  several  Indians  from 
Allegheny,  Andrew  Montour  was  interpreter.  Governor 
Hamilton  held  a  conference  at  Lancaster,  August  23d,  1762, 
with  the  Northern  Indians,  Andrew  Montour  was  State 
interpreter. 

1763. — The  Pontiac  war  was  now  raging." 

Andrew  Montour  was  at  Fort  Augusta  (Shamokin),  on  his 
way  up  the  west  branch  of  the  Susquehanna  on  July  23d, 
1763,  returning  August  7th,  with  news  of  the  Indians'  attack 
on  Loyalhanna,  Ligonier  and  Fort  Pitt  being  reported 
captured.' 

'  "  Massachusetts  Historical  Collection." 
'  "  Pennsylvania  Archives." 
'  "  Colonial  Records. " 


174  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

December  19th,  Captain  Montour  delivered  to  Governor 
John  Penn  an  address  of  welcome  from  the  Conestoga 
Indians  at  Conestoga  Town,  Lancaster  County. 

1764. — Against  the  hostile  Delawares,  residing  on  the 
upper  Susquehanna,  Sir  William  Johnston  sent  a  party  of 
nearly  two  hundred  Indians — Six  Nations,  Tuscarawas  and 
Oneidas,  and  a  few  Rangers — under  the  command  of  Captain 
Montour.'  In  the  middle  of  February  they  left  their  castles 
with  the  intention  of  falling  upon  the  towns  of  the  Dela- 
wares and  Shawanese,  lying  near  the  forks  and  branches  of 
the  Ohio  and  Susquehanna.  They  seized  here  in  their  en- 
campment a  party  of  forty  Delawares  under  the  command 
of  the  famous  Captain  Bull,  a  son  of  the  ill-fated  Teedyus- 
cung.  Captain  Bull  was  a  remarkable  Indian  and  in  capacity 
as  leader  had  done  considerable  damage  during  the  war.  The 
prisoners  were  sent  by  way  of  Fort  Stanwix,  to  Johnston 
Hall.  Captain  Bull  and  thirteen  of  the  warriors  were  sent 
by  way  of  Albany  to  New  York,  and  there  confined  in  jail. 
The  others  were  distributed  among  the  friendly  Indians  to 
supply  the  places  of  lost  relations — an  Indian  custom.* 

On  April  ist.  Captain  Montour,  with  140  Indians  and 
some  Rangers,  set  out  for  Kanestio,  and  after  passing 
several  high  creeks  and  rivers,  they  destroyed  two  large 
towns,  which  were  built  of  square  logs.  After  this  Montour 
proceeded  to  Kanestio,  where  they  destroyed  sixty  good 
houses  and  killed  a  number  of  cattle. 

1768. — A  conference  was  held  at  Fort  Pitt  between  George 
Croghan,  Deputy  Agent  of  Indian  Affairs,  and  the  chiefs  and 
warriors  of  the  Six  Nations,  Delawares,  Shawnese,  and  Mun- 
cies,  residing  on  the  Ohio  River.  "Henry"  Montour,  inter- 
preter. 

'  Stone's  "  Life  of  Sir  William  Johnston." 
i  "  New  York  Colonial  History." 


ANDREW    MONTOUR.  175 

On  October  24th  the  great  Congress  with  the  Indians  at 
Fort  Stanwix  opened.  Andrew  Montour  was  one  of  the 
interpreters  ;  the  others  were  John  Butler  and  Philip  Phillips. 

1769. — A  tract  of  land,  at  the  junction  of  Loyalsock  Creek, 
on  the  west  branch  of  the  Susquehanna,  in  the  present 
county  of  Lycoming,  was  surveyed  November  3,  1769,  for 
Andrew  Montour,  called  Montour's  Reserve.  It  contained 
880  acres. 

It  seems  also  that  "  Henry  "  Montour  claimed,  settled  on, 
and  built  a  house  on  a  tract  of  600  acres  on  or  near  Chillis- 
quaque  Creek,  about  four  or  five  miles  above  Fort  Augusta. 
The  Indian  name  of  Montour  was  "  Sattelihu." 

At  the  time  of  the  visit  of  Zinzendorf  to  Shamokin,  in  the 
autumn  of  1742,  he  met  Andrew  for  the  first  time,  and  thus 
describes  him  :  "  His  cast  of  countenance  is  decidedly  Euro- 
pean, and  had  not  his  face  been  encircled  with  a  broad 
band  of  paint,  applied  with  bear's  fat,  I  would  certainly  have 
taken  him  for  one.  He  wore  a  brown  broadcloth  coat,  a 
scarlet  damasken  lappel  waist-coat,  breeches,  over  which  his 
shirt  hung,  a  black  Cordovan  neckerchief  decked  with  silver 
bugles,  shoes  and  stockings,  and  a  hat.  His  ears  were  hung 
with  pendants  of  brass  and  other  wires  plaited  together  like 
the  handles  of  a  basket.  He  was  very  cordial,  but  on  address- 
ing him  in  French,  he,  to  my  surprise,  replied  in  English." 


GEORGE  CROGHAN. 


George  Croghan  was  the  most  conspicuous  name  in  the 
Western  annals,  in  connection  with  Indian  affairs,  for  twenty- 
five  years  preceding  the  Revolutionary  War.  He  was  a 
native  of  Ireland,  and  received  an  ordinary  education  in 
Dublin.  Came  to  America  in  1743  or  1744.  In  1746  he 
resided  in  East  Pennsboro  Township,  Lancaster,  (afterwards 
Cumberland  County),  five  miles  west  of  Harris'  Ferry,  now 
Harrisburg.' 

In  March,  1749,  he  was  appointed  by  the  Governor  and 
Council  one  of  the  Justices  of  the  Peace  and  Common 
Pleas  for  Lancaster  County.  He  engaged  in  the  Indian 
trade,  going  as  far  as  the  southwestern  border  of  Lake 
Erie  in  1746  or  1747. 

In  1748  he  had  a  trading  house  at  Logstown,  on  the  Ohio, 
and  afterwards  trading  establishments  at  the  principal  Indian 
towns.  ^ 

France  claimed  the  vast  country  west  of  the  Alleghenies, 
watered  by  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  rivers.  She  was  now 
attempting  to  establish  her  claim  by  the  establishment  of 
military  posts  from  the  lakes  to  the  Mississippi  and  along  the 
Allegheny  and  Ohio  rivers. 

The  Indian  tribes  in  this  region,  numerous  and  warlike, 
were  to  be  conciliated.    Croghan  early  saw  the  importance  of 

'  "  Pennsylvania  Archives."      Evans'   Map  of  the    Middle   Colonies, 
1749.     Rupp. 
'  "  Weiser's  Journal." 

(176) 


GEORGE   CROGHAN.  1/7 

detaching  them  from  the  French  by  means  of  presents  and 
more  favorable  trade.  His  suggestions  on  the  subject  were 
wisely  heeded  by  the  President  and  Council  of  the  Province 
of  Pennsylvania,  and  they  accordingly  appointed  him,  in  1747, 
their  agent,  to  deliver  presents  of  goods  to  the  Ohio  Indians.' 

In  April,  1748,  he  met  the  Indian  chiefs  at  Ohio,  returned 
thanks  of  the  President  and  Council  of  Pennsylvania  for  the 
French  scalp  they  had  sent  down  last  spring,  and  delivered 
the  present  of  goods  for  all  their  brethren,  settled  in  and 
about  Ohio,  powder,  lead,  vermilion,  knives  and  tobacco,  to 
the  amount  of  ;^224.5.o.  He  further  stated  that  a  proclama- 
tion had  been  issued,  strictly  forbidding  all  traders  from 
carrying  strong  liquors  into  the  Indian  country  under  severe 
penalties.  The  chiefs  returned  thanks  for  the  presents, 
approved  of  the  suppression  of  the  traffic  in  liquor,  but  as 
they  had  recently  induced  some  nations  of  Indians  in  the 
French  interest  to  leave  them,  and  as  they  had  never  tasted 
English  rum,  they  hoped  some  would  be  sent  to  them.'  They 
significantly  added  "We  send  you  this  French  scalp  as  a 
token  that  we  don't  go  to  visit  them  for  nothing." 

In  August,  1749,  he  was  sent  west  by  Governor  Hamilton 
in  consequence  of  rumors  of  the  French  approaching  the 
Ohio,  and  to  secure  the  Indians  to  the  English  interest.'  He 
reached  Logstown  soon  after  Cdleron,  with  the  French 
troops,  had  left.  The  increasing  intrusion  of  white  settlers 
on  the  unpurchased  lands  of  the  Indians  west  of  the  Susque- 
hanna, in  spite  of  the  laws,  of  the  Governor's  proclamation, 
and  the  threats  of  the  Indians  themselves,  determined  the 
government  to  expel  them  by  force. 

Accordingly,  in  May,  1750,  a  large  company,  headed  by 

'  "  Colonial  Records,"   1747. 
"  "Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V. 
»  "  New  York  Colonial  History." 


178  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

Secretary  Peters,  George  Croghan  and  the  other  magistrates 
and  sheriff  of  the  new  County  of  Cumberland,  visited  the 
settlers  on  the  Big  Juniata,  Sherman's  Creek,  the  Path  Val- 
ley, Big  Cove,  Auchquick  Creek  and  other  places,  removed 
their  household  goods  and  burned  the  log  cabins ;  doubtless 
by  these  effective  measures  preventing  an  Indian  war.' 

In  November  of  the  same  year  he  was  dispatched,  in  com- 
pany with  Andrew  Montour,  to  the  Miamis,  to  renew  the 
chain  of  friendship  and  deliver  them  a  present.  On  their 
way  out,  at  Logstown,  on  the  Ohio,  the  few  chiefs  then  there 
told  him  "their  brothers,  the  English,  ought  to  have  a  fort  on 
this  river  to  secure  the  trade,  as  they  expected  war  with  the 
French  in  the  spring."^ 

At  Muskingum  he  met  Christopher  Gist.  They  travelled 
together  to  Piqua.  There  Croghan  delivered  the  message  and 
presents,  and  made  a  treaty,  for  which  the  Governor  censured 
him,  as  done  without  authority,  although  he  said  he  believed 
Croghan  intended  well.  The  latter  in  his  account  says  the 
Assembly  rejected  the  treaty  and  condemned  him  for  draw- 
ing an  additional  expense  on  the  Government,  and  the  Indians 
were  neglected.^  The  treaty  admits  two  tribes,  Ottawas  and 
Pyankeskees,  to  the  friendship  and  alliance  of  the  King  of 
Great  Britain  and  his  subjects,  as  the  other  tribes  of  the 
Miami's  had  been.  Signed  by  George  Croghan,  in  the  pres- 
ence of  us,  Christopher  Gist,  Robert  Callender,  Thomas  T. 
K.  Kinton,  three  Miami  chiefs,  Andrew  Montour,  John  J.  P. 
Peter,  a  Delaware  and  a  Shawnese  chief  present.  The 
Governor  sent  them  a  message  of  approval  three  months 
later." 

'  "  Assembly  Journals,"  1750. 
''  "Colonial  Records,"  \'ol.  V. 

'  "  New  York  Colonial  History,"  Vol.  VII.     "  Pennsylvania  Assembly 
Journals." 
*  "  Colonial  Recoi^ds,"  Vol.  V,  pp.  524-34. 


\ 

\ 


i 


GEORGE   CROGHAN.  179 

In  May,  1751,  he  was  at  Logstown  with  Andrew  Montour, 
having  been  commissioned  to  deliver  to  the  Ohio  Indians  the 
provincial  present,  and  friendly  messages.  Jean  Cceur,  the 
French  Agent  and  interpreter,  was  there.  At  the  council  he 
was  menaced  by  the  chiefs,  who  ordered  the  French  from 
their  lands.  They  delivered  Croghan  a  speech  for  the  Gov- 
ernor of  Pennsylvania,  in  which  they  requested  he  should 
build  a  strong  house  on  the  Ohio  River  soon.  Governor 
Hamilton  communicated  to  the  House  of  Assembly,  Croghan 
and  Montour's  account  of  their  proceedings,  in  a  special 
message,  and  recommended  the  building  of  a  strong  trading 
house  on  the  Ohio,  and  offered,  on  the  part  of  the  proprie- 
taries, to  bear  a  portion  of  the  expense.  The  Assembly  de- 
clined, and  preferred  the  proprietary  would  contribute  to  the 
expense  of  the  presents  to  the  Indians.  That  body  also 
asserted  that  the  danger  from  the  French,  and  the  Indians' 
request  to  erect  a  strong  trading  house,  was  misunderstood 
or  misrepresented  by  Croghan.     So  the  matter  was  dropped.' 

In  the  latter  part  of  April,  1752,  Governor  Hamilton,  at 
Philadelphia,  received  a  letter  from  Croghan,  written  at  the 
Shawnese  town,  February  8th,  and  enclosing  a  message  from 
the  Shawnese  to  the  effect  that  they  intended  to  war  against 
the  French  in  revenge  for  the  thirty  Miamis  killed  by  them, 
and  wanting  to  be  assured  of  the  friendship  of  the  English.' 

In  October,  1753,  a  large  deputation  of  chiefs  and  warriors 
of  the  Six  Nations,  Delawares,  Shawnese,  Wyandots  and 
Miamis,  held  a  treaty  with  the  Commissioners  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, at  Carlisle.     George  Croghan  was  present.' 

These  Indians  held  a  treaty  at  Winchester,  in  September, 

'  Votes  of  Assembly.      "Colonial  Records."      "New  York  Colonial 
History,"  Vol.  VII,  p.  268. 
"  "  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V. 
'  "  Colonial  Records,"  Vol.  V. 


l80  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

with  Virginia.  Conferences  with  the  Indian  chiefs  were 
generally  held  up  to  1754,  at  George  Croghan's  house  at  Penns- 
boro.  The  road  through  the  pass  on  the  mountain,  about  six 
miles  north  of  Carlisle,  and  the  same  distance  west  of  Cro- 
ghan's, is  marked  "Croghan's  Gap"  on  Evans  Map  of  1749, 
and  all  others  to  a  recent  date,  when  it  seems,  changed  to 
Sterrits  Gap. 

In  1753  Croghan  built  a  house  at  Aughwick  or  Aughquick 
Old  Town,  doubtless  the  site  of  an  old  Indian  town,  now  in 
the  borough  of  Shirleysburgh,  Huntington  County,  Pa., 
called  Croghan's  Fort — Fort  Shirley,  by  Governor  Morris  in 
1756, — when  it  was  enlarged  and  stockaded.'  One  of  the  chain 
of  forts  established  in  consequence  of  the  defeat  of  Braddock. 
About  twenty  miles  from  the  settlements  Fort  Lytellton  was 
built.  Fifteen  miles  northeast  of  Fort  Shirley,  near  the 
mouth  of  a  branch  of  the  Juniata,  called  Kishequokilis,  a 
third  fort  was  erected,  called  Fort  Granville.  From  Fort 
Granville  towards  Susquehanna,  at  the  distance  of  fifteen 
miles  and  about  twelve  from  the  river,  another  fort  was 
established,  called  Pomfret  Castle. 

Croghan  also,  this  year,  1753,  held  a  tract  of  nearly  400 
acres  near  the  present  Bedford  town,  surveyed  by  the  Deputy 
Surveyor,  Armstrong,  and  obtained  a  grant  from  the  Six 
Nations  of  a  tract  in  Aughwick. 

February  3,  1754. — Again  Croghan  wrote  to  Governor  Ham- 
ilton, and  Richard  Peters,  Secretary,  urging  the  building  of 
a  strong  log  trading  house  or  stockade, — in  reality  a  fort,  but 
inexpensive.  He  mentions  that  Mr.  Trent  has  just  come  out 
with  the  Virginia  Guards  and  brought  a  quantity  of  tools  and 
workmen  to  build  a  fort,  and  as  he  could  not  talk  the  Indian 
language,  "I  am  obliged  to  stay  and  assist  in  dividing  the 
goods."     This  was  the  commencement  of  the  fortification  at 

'  "Pennsylvania  Archives." 


GEORGE    CROGHAN.  l8l 

the  Forks  of  the  Ohio,  which  Ensign  Ward  was  obliged  to 
surrender,  when  partly  finished,  to  the  superior  force  of 
Contrecceur,  in  April.  During  the  past  winter  Croghan  had 
a  large  number  of  Indians  at  Aughwick  under  his  charge. 
The  Assembly  of  Pennsylvania  adjourned  on  March  9th, 
without  making,  but  refusing  to  make,  any  appropriation  for 
the  defense  of  the  Province. 

On  March  13,  1754,  Governor  Hamilton  wrote  to  Governor 
Dinwiddle  :  "  Ever  since  I  had  the  honor  to  write  you  I  have 
been  laboring  indefatigably  with  my  Assembly  to  induce  them 
to  act  vigorously  on  the  present  critical  juncture  of  affairs  at 
Ohio,  and  to  grant  such  supplies  as  might  enable  us  to  resist 
the  invasion  of  the  French."  In  another  letter  of  the  same 
date  he  wished  Governor  Dinwiddle  to  inform  him  as  to  the 
situation  of  the  French  forts,  as  he  believes  those  at  the 
Forks  of  the  Monongahela  to  be  really  within  the  bounds  of 
Pennsylvania.  Governor  Dinwiddle  replied  March  21st :  "I 
am  from  all  hands  assured  Logstown  is  far  to  the  West  of 
Mr.  Penn's  grant  and  the  Forks  of  the  Ohio  also."  ^ 

"  In  January  I  commissioned  William  Trent  to  raise  one 
Hundred  men  ;  he  had  got  Seventy  and  had  begun  a  Fort  at 
the  Forks  of  the  Monhongialo.  His  Majesty  sent  me  out  Thirty 
Pieces  of  Cannon,  Four-Pounders,  with  Carriages  and  all 
necessary  Impliments,  with  Eighty  Barrells  of  Gun  Powder." 

December  6,  1754. — This  message  was  received  from  the 
Assembly  :  "As  we  apprehend,  the  Governor  will  agree  with 
us  in  the  necessity  of  regulating  that  Expence  (Indian  Allies), 
with  all  possible  economy,  and  as  George  Croghan  (whose 
accounts  we  have  allowed)  seems  resolved  to  remove  from 
Aughquick,  and  the  Indians  by  that  means  will  be  left  with- 
out any  proper  Person  to  take  the  necessary  Care  of  providing 
for  their  Subsistence,  we  recommend  it  to  the   Governor's 

'  "  Colonial  Records." 


1 82  CHRISTOPHER   GISTS   JOURNALS. 

Consideration  whether  it  might  not  be  more  convenient  for 
the  Indians  themselves,  and  less  Expence  to  the  Province,  if 
they  were  invited  to  move  nearer  our  Back  Inhabitants,  till 
by  Hunting  or  otherwise,  they  may  be  able  to  subsist  them- 
selves with  Safety." 

In  a  letter  to  Governor  Morris,  December  2,  1754,  he  gives 
the  reasons  for  wishing  to  leave  Aughquick.  "All  the  Prom- 
ises made  those  Indians  or  any  Expectations  they  have  of  this 
government  Doing  anything  for  them,  they  always  expect  to 
be  fulfilled  by  me,  and  as  it  is  not  in  my  power  to  do  any- 
thing for  them,  I  think  it  proper  one  of  the  Interpreters 
should  be  sent  here  to  take  care  of  them,  they  imagine  I 
have  received  orders  from  your  Honour  to  supply  them  with 
such  things  as  they  want.  I  think  it  is  my  Duty  to  acquaint 
your  Honour  what  I  know  of  the  Indians  Sentiments  and  what 
they  expect  of  this  Government,  which  is  as  follows.  The 
Ohio  Indians  in  general  puts  their  whole  dependence  on 
this  government  in  regard  to  the  Expedition,  as  soon  as 
this  government  moves  they  will  unite  all  their  force  and 
attack  the  French." 

R.  Peters,  in  a  letter  to  George  Croghan  desires  him  to 
make  his  opinion  known  to  the  Assembly  relative  to  remov- 
ing the  Indians  from  Auchquick,  "and  insist  that  a  stockade 
be  made  this  winter."  In  George  Croghan's  answer  to  Mr. 
Peters  as  to  the  best  method  of  moving  the  Indians  he  writes, 
"  I  think  it  would  be  of  very  ill  consequence,  for  I  think  they 
are  full  near  the  Inhabitants  already;  there  was  one  White 
Man  killed  this  summer  already  by  an  Indian  in  a  drunken 
frolic,  and  if  they  lived  among  them  there  would  be  con- 
stantly rioting  and  quarrelling.  I  don't  know  what  will 
become  of  the  Back  parts  unless  there  be  a  Stockade  Fort  put 
up  this  side  the  Blue  Hills,  as  certainly  the  Indians  who  come 
to  the  Virginia  Camp  are  Spies  come  to  view  the  Country 


GEORGE    CROGHAN.  I 83 

and  know  our  strength,  for  I  am  certain  there  is  a  great  body 
of  French  and  Indians  at  the  French  Fort  on  Ohio." 

In  a  letter  of  December  23,  1754  to  Governor  Morris,  he 
writes  :  "  I  am  obliged  to  advertise  the  Inhabitants  of  Cum- 
berland County,  in  your  honour's  name,  not  to  barter  or  sell 
Liquour  to  the  Indians,  or  to  any  persons  to  bring  amongst 
them." 

Croghan  always  took  an  important  part  in  all  conferences 
and  treaties  with  the  Indians.' 

Croghan  was  one  of  the  Commissioners  appointed  to  open 
a  road  to  the  Ohio  for  the  use  of  troops.  May  12,  1755,  the 
Governor  wrote  to  Braddock  :  "Agreeable  to  your  request, 
immediately  upon  my  return  from  Alexandria,  I  sent  to 
George  Croghan,  the  person  entrusted  with  the  management 
of  the  Indians  in  this  Province,  to  join  you  with  as  large  a 
body  of  Indians  as  he  could."  General  Braddock,  in  his 
answer,  writes :  "  I  have  engaged  between  forty  and  fifty 
Indians  from  the  Frontier  of  your  Province  to  go  with  me 
over  the  Mountains,  and  shall  take  Croghan  and  Montour  into 
Service." 

Letter  from  George  Croghan  to  Governor  Morris,  May  20, 
175s  :  "Tomorrow  what  Indian  women  and  children  came  to 
Fort  Cumberland  with  me  will  be  sent  back  to  Aucquick  by 
order  of  the  General,  the  Men  entirely  go  with  the  General, 
and  the  General  insists  on  my  going  with  him,  so  that  it  is 
out  of  my  Power  to  provide  for  those  Women  and  Children. 
The  messengers  I  sent  to  the  Shawnese,  Twigtwees  and 
Owendots,  are  not  yet  returned  but  I  hear  they  are  coming, 
so  that  I  hope  they  will  join  the  General  before  the  Army  gets 
to  the  Ohio."  After  the  defeat  of  Braddock,  Croghan  re- 
turned to  Aughquick.  The  Indians  held  a  conference  at 
Philadelphia  and  complained  of  the  ignorance  of  the  General 
and  the  haughty  way  he  had  treated  them. 

'  "  Colonial  Records." 


l84  CHRISTOPHER    GTST  S   JOURNALS. 

Letter  of  Croghan  to  Charles  Swaine,  from  Aughquick, 
says  :  "  He  had  seen  an  Indian  from  Ohio,  sent  to  give  him 
warning  that  he  might  save  his  scalp,  which  he  says  would  be 
no  small  prize  to  the  French,  and  he  desires  me,  as  soon  as  I 
see  the  Indians  remove  from  Susquehanna  back  to  Ohio,  to 
shift  my  quarters,  for  he  says  that  the  French  will,  if  possible, 
lay  all  the  back  frontiers  in  ruin  this  Winter."  "  I  am  glad  I 
have  no  hand  in  Indian  affairs  at  this  critical  time." 

November  12th,  Croghan  writes  to  Hamilton :  "  Permit 
me  at  this  Critical  Time  to  give  you  information  of  the  designs 
of  the  Enemy.  I  would  have  written  to  the  Governor  but  he 
has  not  thought  proper  to  desire  me  to  give  him  any  accounts 
of  Indian  Afifairs  since  the  defeat  of  General  Braddock.  The 
Six  Nations,  Delawares,  Shawanese,  Wyandots  and  Twig- 
trees  have  held  a  Conference  and  determined  to  proceed 
against  the  Frontiers  of  Virginia,  Maryland  and  Pennsylvania 
this  winter." 

1755. — Orders  were  sent  to  Captain  George  Croghan  "to 
proceed  to  Cumberland  County  and  fix  on  proper  places  for 
erecting  three  stockadoes,  viz. :  One  back  of  Patterson's,  one 
upon  Kishecoquillas,  and  one  near  Sideling  Hill,  fifty  feet 
square,  with  a  block-house  on  two  of  the  corners  and  a 
barrack  within,  capable  of  lodging  fifty  men." 

December  17. — James  Hamilton  wrote  to  Governor  Morris  : 
"  Since  you  left  us,  Conrad  Weiser,  James  Galbraith  and 
George  Croghan  have  been  in  town,  and  have  been  fully 
examined  by  the  Councils  upon  all  the  Points  we  thought 
necessary  to  be  known.  The  Country  is  everywhere  alarmed. 
I  have  given  George  Croghan  a  Captain's  Commission.  He 
is  to  raise  the  men  immediately  and  superintend  the  building 
of  Stockades." 

Governor  Morris  gave  to  Governor  Hardy  this  character  of 
Croghan  :     "  There  were  many  Indian  traders  with  Braddock, 


^Jf^^/> 


ff/  (M/iJ  /ry /he  C/rtrm/nce.  e¥ 


(^»ruAF  /Su  Quesne/ 


t.,4^tiffffwi\i 


C^ti.edf  6f  mi./ram  f^  an'^ina/  t^Me  f^cM<  ^t»nf  ^iee^^antten. 


WEST  PENNSYLVAN 


41  ->       ^r-^"^ 


y>^^-^ 


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si 


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,a  ND  VIRGINIA,  1755. 


*^  iM>u^   ej   Q'n.f'^t^A.  ^..yilt^O^ 


GEORGE   CROGHAN.  I 8$ 

and  among  others  Croghan,  who  acted  as  a  Captain  of  the 
Indians  under  a  Warrant  from  General  Braddock,  and  I  never 
heard  any  objections  to  his  conduct  in  that  capacity.  For 
many  years  he  had  been  very  largely  concerned  in  the  Ohio 
trade,  was  upon  that  river  frequently,  and  had  a  considerable 
influence  among  the  Indians,  speaking  the  Language  of  several 
nations,  and  being  very  liberal  or  rather  profuse  in  his  gifts 
to  them  which,  with  the  losses  he  sustained  by  the  French, 
who  seized  great  quantities  of  his  goods,  and  by  not  getting 
the  debts  due  to  him  from  the  Indians,  be  became  Bankrupt, 
and  since  has  lived  at  a  place  called  Aughwick,  in  the  Back 
parts  of  this  Province,  where  he  had  generally  a  number  of 
Indians  with  him,  for  the  maintenance  of  whom  the  Province 
allowed  him  sums  of  money  from  time  to  time.  After 
this  he  went  by  my  order  with  those  Indians  and  joined 
General  Braddock ;  since  Braddock's  defeat  he  returned 
to  Aughwick,  where  he  remained  until  anact  of  assembly 
was  passed  here  granting  him  a  freedom  from  arrest  for 
ten  years ;  this  was  done  that  the  Province  might  have  the 
Benefit  of  his  Knowledge  of  the  woods  and  his  influence 
among  the  Indians.  A  Captain's  commission  was  given  to 
him  and  he  was  ordered  to  raise  men  for  the  defence  of  the 
Western  Frontier,  which  he  did  in  a  very  expeditious  manner, 
he  continued  in  the  command  of  one  of  the  Companies  he 
had  raised,  and  of  Fort  Shirley  about  three  months,  when, 
having  a  dispute  with  the  Commissioners  about  some  accounts 
between  them,  in  which  he  thought  himself  ill-used,  he  re- 
signed his  commission.  I  hear  he  is  now  at  Onondago  with 
Sir  William  Johnston." 

At  a  Council  held  at  Philadelphia,  December  14,  1756,  the 

Governor  informed  the  Council  that  Sir  William  Johnston 

had  appointed  Mr.  Croghan  to  transact  Indian  affairs  in  this 

Province.     Mr.  Croghan  was  of  opinion  that  there  should  be 

13 


1 86  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

a  conference  held  with  the  Indians  as  early  as  possible  in  the 
Spring.  He  was  instructed  by  Sir  William  Johnston  to  pro- 
ceed to  Philadelphia  as  soon  as  he  could,  or  to  any  part  of 
that  Province  where  the  good  of  his  Majesty's  Indian  interest 
might  require.  He  was  to  endeavor  to  find  out  the  dispo- 
sition of  such  Indians  as  are  still  living  in  those  parts  and 
try  all  means  to  convince  them  it  is  their  interest  to  continue 
friends  with  the  English,  and  to  seek  out  the  Delawares  and 
Shawanese  and  induce  them  to  join  his  Majesty's  army. 

During  January,  1757,  Mr.  Croghan  dispatched  two  of  the 
Conestogas  to  Ohio  with  messages  to  the  Six  Nations, 
Delawares  and  Shawanese.  March  29  he  wrote  from  Harris' 
Ferry  "that  on  arriving  there  he  found  160  Indians,  chiefly 
Six  Nations.  Teedyuscung  had  gone  to  the  Seneca  Country 
and  he  expected  him  soon  with  not  less  than  200  Indians." 
He  asked  for  clothes  for  them,  which  request  was  granted  by 
the  Council.  The  conference  with  the  Indians  asked  for  by 
George  Croghan  was  held  in  the  court-house  at  Lancaster,  on 
Monday,  May  16,  1757.  Mr.  Croghan  thought  it  necessary 
that  presents  should  be  made  to  the  Cherokees,  to  consist  of 
such  articles  as  Mr.  Croghan  might  think  those  warriors  stood 
most  in  need  of,  particularly  arms.  This  request  of  Mr. 
Croghan  was  granted  and  he  was  appointed  to  distribute  the 
presents.  The  Sachems  made  the  following  speech  :  "  As 
we  have  finished  the  business  for  this  time  and  we  design  to 
part  to-morrow,  you  must  be  sensible  that  we  have  a  long 
journey  and  a  hilly  country  to  pass  over,  and  several  of  our 
old  men  very  weak,  we  hope  that  you  will  not  send  us  from 
your  frontiers  without  a  '  walking-stick,'  (meaning  a  keg  of 
rum)." 

In  September,  1757,  Croghan  was  at  Fort  Johnston,  New 
York,  attending  conferences  between  Sir  William  Johnston 
and  the  Six  Nations  and  Cherokees.  Previous  to  that  he  had 
been  sent  by  Johnston  to  the  German  Flats. 


GEORGE   CROGHAN.  I 87 

June  30,  1758. — He  marched  with  a  division  of  the  Indians 
to  join  General  Abercrombie.  Sir  William  Johnston  was  with 
him  and  nearly  4CK>  Indians,  amongst  whom  there  were  some 
of  all  the  Five  Nations. 

A  conference  was  held  in  the  town  of  Easton  on  October 
8,  1758,  at  which  George  Croghan  was  present.  This  con- 
ference continued  until  the  26th. 

On  March  28,  1759,  Mr.  Croghan,  in  conference  with  the 
Governor,  gave  it  as  his  opinion,  that  there  should  be  no  invi- 
tations sent  fixing  the  time  of  meeting  for  the  Ohio  Indians. 
If  any  further  invitation  was  necessary,  it  should  be  general, 
intimating  that  we  expected  to  see  them,  and  leave  the  par- 
ticular time  to  themselves,  not  knowing  what  time  would  suit 
the  Indians,  who  were  so  far  distant  one  from  another.  Mr. 
Croghan  said  further,  that  the  Indians  in  town  were  exceed- 
ingly uneasy,  and  desired  an  audience  of  General  Stanwix, 
on  which  the  Governor  wrote  a  letter  to  the  General,  desiring 
him  to  give  the  Indians  an  audience  and  to  make  them  pres- 
ents to  their  satisfaction. 

July,  1759. — A  conference  was  held  at  Pittsburgh  by 
George  Croghan,  Deputy  Agent.  Col.  Hugh  Mercer,  a  num- 
ber of  officers  of  the  garrison  and  chiefs  of  the  Six  Nations, 
Shawanese  and  Delawares  were  present.  Captain  Croghan 
held  a  private  conference,  relative  to  the  price  of  goods  and 
skins. 

May,  1760. — Croghan  wrote  to  R.  Peters,  recommending 
to  him  six  Mohock  Indians,  who  had  come  to  Fort  Pitt  with 
Montour,  and  informing  him  that  several  Indian  Nations  seem 
bent  on  carrying  on  a  war  against  the  Southern  Indians,  but 
are  deterred  by  scarcity  of  ammunition.  A  conference  was 
held  at  Pittsburgh,  on  the  12th  of  August,  by  Brigadier-Gen- 
eral Moncton,  with  the  Western  Nation  of  Indians,  at  which 
Deputy  Agent  Croghan  was  present.     Croghan  accompanied 


I88  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

Major  Rogers  to  Detroit,  to  receive  the  surrender  of  that  and 
the  other  posts  of  the  French  in  the  west.  Captain  Croghan 
kept  a  journal  of  this  expedition,  which  has  been  published. 
July,  1760. — He  accompanied  Colonel  Bouquet,  from  Fort 
Pitt  to  Venango,  with  a  detachment  0/  troops.  During  the 
Pontiac  War,  Croghan  was  active ;  he  was  with  Captain 
Ecuyer,  during  the  investment  of  Fort  Pitt  by  the  Indians. 
After  it  was  relieved  by  Bouquet,  he  resigned  out  of  the  service, 
intending  to  sail  for  England ;  he  wrote  thus  from  Carlisle, 
October  11,  1763:  "I  know  many  people  will  think  I  am 
wrong,  but  had  I  continued,  I  could  be  of  no  more  service 
than  I  have  been  this  eighteen  months  past,  which  was  none, 
as  no  regard  was  had  to  any  intelligence  I  sent,  no  more  than 
to  my  opinion."  General  Gage,  succeeding  Amherst,  ordered 
Croghan  to  remain.  Sir  William  Johnston,  in  1763,  sent  him 
to  England,  to  confer  with  the  ministry,  about  an  Indian 
boundary  line.  In  this  voyage,  he  was  shipwrecked  on  the 
coast  of  France. 

February  28. — He  was  present  at  an  Indian  conference,  at 
Fort  Pitt,  a  journal  of  which  has  been  published. 

While  on  his  way,  in  1765,  to  pacify  the  Illinois  Indians,  he 
was  attacked,  June  8,  wounded  and  taken  to  Vincennes,  but 
was  soon  released,  and  accomplished  his  mission.  In  May, 
1766,  he  made  a  settlement,  four  miles  above  Fort  Pitt.  He 
continued  to  render  valuable  service  in  pacifying  the  Indians, 
until  1776.  He  was  an  object  of  suspicion  to  the  Revolution- 
ary authorities,  in  1778,  but  as  he  continued  to  reside  on  his 
farm,  he  was  doubtless  unjustly  accused. 

George  Croghan's  settlement  was  undoubtedly  the  first, 
except  Gist's,  within  the  County  of  Allegheny.  The  house 
stood  on  the  bank  of  the  Allegheny  River,  a  few  rods  from 
the  late  residence  of  Judge  McCandless.  Two  ancient  apple 
trees  mark  the  exact  spot,  on  the  draft  of  survey.     The  White 


GEORGE   CROGHAN.  I89 

Mingo  Castle  is  marked  on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  at  the 
mouth  of  Pine  Creek.  At  his  residence  here,  he  held  fre- 
quent conferences  with  the  Indians,  some  of  whom  were 
frequently  there  when  he  was  at  home.  In  Washington's 
"Journal  of  a  Tour  to  the  Ohio  River,"  in  1770,  is  entered, 
October  18,  "Dined  with  Col.  Croghan." 

In  the  MS.  copy  of  Land  Office  Survey,  in  June,  1769, 
for  George  Croghan's  tract  of  1,352  acres,  the  White 
Mingoes'  Castle  is  laid  down  on  the  north  side  of  the  river, 
opposite  to  the  land  surveyed,  and  near  the  mouth  of  Pine 
Creek,  on  the  east  side.  Clarkson's  Diary,  of  1766,  refers  to 
this  "  Indian  Settlement  of  the  Mingoes,"  and  as  the  "  White 
Mingo's  Town,"  in  Schoolcraft's  "American  Abridged  Ar- 
chives," Volume  IV,  pp.  269-271.  It  was,  however,  a  much 
older  place  of  resort  by  the  Indians.  The  present  Kittanning 
road,  from  half  a  mile  above  the  mouth  of  Pine  Creek,  direct 
to  Kittanning,  was  the  old  Kittanning  path  of  the  Indians, 
and  so  called  by  the  older  white  settlers,  within  the  memory 
of  the  writer.  In  1753-4,  William  Trent  and  George  Croghan, 
partners  in  the  Indian  trade,  had  a  storehouse  above  the 
mouth  of  Pine  Creek ;  also  fenced  fields  of  Indian  corn  and 
numbers  of  large  canoes  and  batteaux,  all  of  which  were 
seized  by  the  French  in  1754.' 

Pine  Creek  empties  into  the  Allegheny  River,  on  the  north 
side,  five  Miles  above  the  site  of  Fort  Pitt,  near  the  present 
towns  of  Sharpsburgh  and  Etna.  Indians  of  the  Six  Nations 
appear  to  have  built  the  town  at  this  point,  soon  after  the  erec- 
tion of  Fort  Pitt.  It  was  known  as  the  "  White  Mingo  Town," 
from  the  head  chief.  These  Indians  came  from  the  "  Mingo 
town,"  on  the  northwest  side  of  the  Ohio,  about  three  miles 
below  the  site  of  the  present  city  of  Steubenville,  near  the 
mouth  of  Indian  Cross  Creek  and  "Mingo  Junction,"  of  the 

I  MS.  affidavit  of  Croghan,  and  others,  Carlisle,  1756. 


IQO  CHRISTOPHER    GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

Pittsburgh,  St.  Louis  and  Pittsburgh  and  Wheeling  railways. 
It  was  a  town  inhabited  chiefly  by  the  Senecas,  called  with 
others  of  the  Six  Nations,  "  Mingoes."'  Washington  visited 
it  in  October  and  November,  1770,  on  his  way  to  and  from 
the  Kanawha.  He  states  that  it  then  had  about  twenty 
cabins  and  seventy  inhabitants  of  the  Six  Nations.  Accord- 
ing to  Thomas  Hutchins,  it  was  the  only  Indian  village,  in 
1766,  between  Fort  Pitt  and  the  Falls  of  the  Ohio.  It  then 
contained  sixty  families.  The  Monsies  were  a  tribe  of  the 
Delawares,  speaking  a  somewhat  different  dialect.  Their 
settlement  was  probably  the  Sewickly  town  on  Evans'  Map  of 
1755,  and  Scull's  of  1770,  where  the  town  of  Springdale  now 
stands,  twelve  miles  above  Pittsburgh,  on  the  northwest 
side  of  the  Allegheny  River.  Conrad  Weiser  passed  a  night 
there.  John  Conolly  and  Captain  Ed.  Ward  were  relatives 
of  George  Croghan ;  their  exact  relationship  is  not  known. 
Susannah,  wife  of  General  Prevost,  was  his  only  child ;  she 
died  at  Milgrove,  Montgomery  County,  Pennsylvania,  March, 
1791.  Her  heirs  tried  to  recover  part  of  his  property,  but 
were  unsuccessful.  The  history  of  George  Croghan,  the  In- 
dians' friend  and  generous  protector,  is  the  history  of  the 
Indians  of  Pennsylvania; — their  conferences,  treaties,  and 
treatment  by  the  white  usurpers.''  George  Croghan's  house, 
on  the  Allegheny,  was  erected  in  1759-60 ;  burned  by  the 
Indians  during  their  outbreak  in  the  Summer  of  1763 ;  rebuilt 
on  the  same  spot ;  was  standing  the  beginning  of  this  century. 


DEED  TO  GEORGE  CROGHAN. 


Whereas  Johonisse,  Scarayoday  and  Teedyuscung  chiefs  or 
sachems  of  the  Six  united  Nations  of  Indians  did  by  their  deed 

'  George  Croghan's  Journal. 

'  See  Ecuyer's  Journal  in  "  Fort  Pitt." 


DEED    TO    GEORGE    CKOGHAN.  '  IQI 

duly  executed  having  date  the  2d  day  of  August  A  D  1749  for 
the  consideration  therein  mentioned  grant  bargain  and  sell  to 
George  Croghan  in  fee  a  certain  tract  of  land  Beginning  on  the 
eastern  side  of  the  river  Ohio  to  the  northward  of  an  old  Indian 
town  called  Shannopins  Town  at  the  mouth  of  a  run  called 
the  Two  mile  run  and  running  thence  up  the  said  two  mile 
run  to  where  it  intersects  with  the  heads  of  the  two  mile 
springs  where  it  empties  into  the  Monongahela  river,  thence 
down  the  said  two  mile  springs  the  same  course  thereof 
into  the  said  river  Monongahela,  thence  up  the  said  river 
Monongahela  to  where  Turtle  creek  empties  itself  into 
the  said  river,  thence  up  the  said  creek  to  the  first  forks 
thereof,  thence  up  the  north  or  northerly  branch  of  the  said 
creek  to  the  head  of  the  same,  thence  north  or  a  northerly 
course  until  it  strikes  Plumb  Creek,  thence  down  said 
Plumb  creek  until  it  empties  itself  into  the  river  Allegheny 
and  thence  down  the  said  river  Allegheny  to  the  place  of 
beginning  where  the  aforesaid  two  mile  run  discharges  itself 
into  the  said  river  Ohio  containing  by  estimate  Forty  thousand 
Acres  be  the  same  more  or  less  as  by  the  same  deed  more  fully 
appears.  And  whereas  said  Chiefs  or  Sachems  fully  repre- 
senting the  six  united  Nations  aforesaid  in  full  council  assem- 
bled at  Fort  Stanwix  did  by  their  Deed  Poll  duly  executed 
bearing  date  the  nth  November  1768  for  the  consideration 
therein  mentioned,  granted  and  conveyed  to  his  most  sacred 
Majesty  George  III  king  of  Great  Britain,  for  the  benefit  and 
behoof  of  said  George  Croghan  all  the  before  mentioned  tract 
of  land  ;  for  part  of  which  said  lands  George  Croghan  made 
application  unto  the  Secretarys  office  at  Philadelphia  April 
1st  1769  and  obtained  a  special  grant  for  part  of  the  same 
from  the  Proprietor  of  Pennsylvania  as  appears  from  the 
records  of  the  Land  Office  at  Philadelphia,  reference  being 
had  thereto  may  more  fully  appear,  which  application  with 


192  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

surveys  were  made  and  returned  to  the  Surveyor  Generals 
Office  at  Philadelphia.  And  whereas  said  George  Croghan 
by  Indenture  20th  April  1776  granted  and  conveyed  to  said 
Thomas  Gerty  476%  Acres  part  of  the  aforesaid  land.  Be- 
ginning at  a  Black  Oak  on  the  Eastern  bank  of  the  river 
Allegheny  and  running  thence  north  to  a  Sycamore  in  a  small 
island  on  Crab  Tree  run  now  commonly  called  Plumb  Creek, 
thence  down  to  a  Sycamore  at  the  junction  with  the  Allegheny.' 


LETTER  FROM  WILLIAM  TRENT  TO  GOVERNOR 
HAMILTON. 


Virginia,  April  10,  1753. 
May  it  please  your  Honour 

I  have  received  a  letter  just  now  from  Mr.  Croghan  wherein 
he  acquaints  me  that  fifty  odd  Ottawas,  Conewagos,  one 
Dutchman  and  one  of  the  Six  nations  that  was  their  Captain 
met  with  some  of  Our  people  at  a  place  called  Kentucky  on 
this  side  Allegheny  river  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles 
from  the  lower  Shawanese  Town,  they  took  eight  Prisoners, 
five  belonging  to  Mr  Croghan  and  me,  the  others  to  Lowry, 
they  took  three  or  four  hundred  Pounds  worth  of  goods  from 
us,  one  of  them  made  his  escape  after  he  had  been  a  Prisoner 
three  days,  three  of  John  Finleys  men  are  killed  by  the  little 
Pict  Town  and  no  account  of  himself,  they  robbed  Michael 
Teaffs  People  near  the  Lakes,  there  was  one  Frenchman  in 
Company,  the  Owendats  secured  his  People  and  five  horse 
loads  of  Skins.  Mr  Croghan  is  coming  thro'  the  Woods  with 
some  Indians  and  Whites  and  the  rest  of  the  White  men  and 
the  Indians  are  coming  up  the  river  in  a  body  though  'tis  a 
question  whether  they  escape,  as  three  hundred  Ottawas  were 

'  See  Treaty  at  Fort  Stanwix. 


BOUQUET    PAPERS.  193 

expected  at  the  lower  Town  every  day  and  another  Party  of 
French  and  Indians  coming  down  the  river,  the  Indians  are 
in  such  confusion  that  there  is  no  knowing  who  to  trust.  I 
expect  they  will  all  join  the  French  except  the  Delawares,  as 
they  expect  no  assistance  from  the  English.  The  Low  Dutch- 
mans  name  that  was  with  the  Party  that  robbed  our  People  is 
Philip  Philips,  his  mother  lives  near  Col.  Johnsons,  he  was 
taken  by  the  French  Indians  about  six  years  ago  and  has  lived 
ever  since  with  them ;  he  intends  sometime  this  summer  to 
go  and  see  his  mother,  if  your  Honour  pleases  to  acquaint  the 
Governor  of  New  York  with  it,  he  may  possibly  get  him 
secured  by  keeping  it  secret,  and  acquainting  Col.  Johnson 
with  it  and  ordering  him  to  apprehend  him  ;  if  the  Dutchman 
once  come  to  understand  it,  they  will  contrive  to  send  him 
word  to  keep  out  of  the  way. 

I  intend  leaving  directly  for  Allegheny  with  provisions  for 
our  People  that  are  coming  through  the  woods  and  up  the 
river.  I  am  your  Honours 

most  obedient  humble  servant 

William  Trent. 
[Endorsed  James  Hamilton.] 


BOUQUET  PAPERS. 


Fort  Pitt,  January  24,  1763. 
Dear  Sir 

Since  I  wrote  you  last  there  has  little  happened  here  in 

my  department  worth  mentioning.      Some   Shennas   came 

here  and  delivered  up  four  prisoners  and  yesterday  some 

Chiefs  arrived  on  the  other  side  y'  River,  who  have  brought 

four  more  which  will  be  delivered  up  to-morrow  and  those 

Chiefs  tell  me  they  are  to  stay  and  hunt  here  about  till  y" 

last  is  brought  up  in  y"  spring. 


194  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

Captain  Ecuyer  will  write  you  y°  news  of  this  place.  Y" 
gentlemen  here  are  all  bucks  ;  nothing  but  Flutes  and  assem- 
blys,  we  really  live  in  great  harmony. 

Sir,  I  have  taken  y'  Liberty  to  draw  on  you  for  ;^ioo  in 
favour  of  John  Welsh  for  which  and  y'  £ioo  to  Capt.  Basett 
you  will  please  to  keep  y'  warrant  which  I  expect  y'  General 
has  granted  for  y''  small  account  of  ;^  18000  which  I  was  in 
advance  and  sent  by  you. 

I  am  dear  Sir  with  great  esteem  and  regard 
y'  most  humble  servant 

George  Croghan. 


Fort  Pitt,  March  19,  1763. 
Dear  Sir 

I  am  sorry  that  Col.  John  Armstrong  has  not  returned 
y  four  Tracts  run  out  for  you  last  fall  with  y'  Tract 
of  y'  big  spring  on  Vinord  Creek,  which  are  all  done.  I  have 
wrote  him  to  return  them  as  soon  as  possible  ;  as  to  y'  Tracts 
on  Vinord  Creek  you  may  depend  on  it  I  will  have  them  run 
out  next  month  when  I  shall  be  at  Bedford. 

As  to  the  other  affair  my  Brother  is  now  on  y'  spot  with  y" 
Indian  and  diging  y°  produce  of  which  I  will  send  you  on  my 
arrival  at  Bedford  where  I  expect  to  be  by  y'  first  of  April. 

As  I  shall  not  have  y'  pleasure  of  accompanying  you  down 
y'  river,  I  think  it  my  duty  to  give  you  my  opinion  of  that 
tour,  with  respect  to  making  any  settlement.  I  dare  say  you 
will  find  that  the  French  has  not  purchased  any  more  Land  of 
the  Indians  than  just  what  they  have  occupyed  and  that  you 
will  find  y'  Indians  will  not  stand  tame  Spectators  and  see  set- 
tlements made  in  their  Country  without  first  having  some  con- 
sideration given  them  for  it  and  I  am  of  opinion  the  French 
will  do  every  thing  in  their  power  privately  to  give  y'  Indians  a 


BOUQUET    PAPERS.  IQS 

bad  impression  of  us  so  that  your  hands  should  be  open  with 
respect  to  presents  you  should  have  at  least  fifty  Indians  from 
hence  with  you  of  y"'  diferent  Nations  and  such  as  is  of  con- 
sequence amongst  these  Nations,  with  whom  I  will  send 
young  Mr.  McKee  who  is  a  modest  young  man  and  one  you 
can  depend  on  as  a  good  interpreter.  You  will  find  y"  Cher- 
okees  our  enemies  tho'  they  seem  quiet  on  y'  frontiers  of 
Carolina,  and  what  obliged  them  to  be  so  is  nothing  else  than 
y'  war  which  y°  Western  Nations  has  carryed  on  against  them 
with  great  Spirit  this  two  years  past,  they  have  been  this 
winter  endeavouring  to  accumodate  maters  which  if  they 
should  do  may  give  us  more  trouble  than  we  may  expect. 
I  am  Dear  sir  with  esteem  and  regard 

y'  Most  Humble  servant 

George  Croghan. 
[To  Col.  Bouquet.] 


FOR  COL.  HENRY  BOUQUET. 

Fort  Pitt,  March  19,  1763. 
Dear  Sir 

I  was  favoured  with  yours  of  the  22d  February  and  observe 

the  Generals  resolution  with  respect  to  giving  any  presents  to 

y'  Indians  this  way,  which  was  no  more  than  I  expected.    I  was 

fully  determined  to  give  as  little  as  possible  to  y'  Indians  here 

this  winter  and  I  dare  say  when  you  see  y"  accounts  you  will 

see  that  nothing  has  been  given  on  y^  kings  account  which 

could  have  been  avoided.     Indeed  I  believe  it  has  cost  me 

near  ;^ioo  out  of  my  own  pocket  in  trifels  which  I  did  not 

chuse  to  trouble  Captain  Ecuyer  with  nor  could  I  avoid  doing 

it  myself  without  letting  y'  service  suffer.   Since  y'  reduction 

of  Canada  the  several  Indian  Nations  this  Way  has  been 

very  jelous  of  his  Majestys  growing  power  in  this  Country 


196  CHRISTOPHER    GIST'S   JOURNALS. 

but  this  last  account  of  so  much  of  North  America  being 
ceded  to  Great  Britain  has  almost  drove  them  to  despair,  and 
by  leters  from  Major  Gladwin  and  Captain  Campble  it  appears 
that  y'  Indians  over  the  Lakes  are  full  as  many  there  as  on 
this  Side.  As  to  y"  News  how  they  may  behave  I  cant  pre- 
tend to  say,  but  I  do  not  aprove  of  General  Armhursts  plan 
in  distresing  them  too  much  at  wonst  as  in  my  opinion  they 
will  not  consider  Consequences  if  too  much  distrest,  tho'  Sir 
Jeffrey  thinks  they  will.  Some  time  ago  I  wrote  to  Sir  Wil- 
liam Johnson  and  let  him  know  that  if  Sir  Jeffrey  Amhurst 
did  not  give  me  leave  to  go  to  England  to  solicit  a  restitution 
for  y=  great  depredations  committed  on  me  by  the  King  of 
Frances  Subjects  in  y'  beginning  of  y'=  war,  that  I  would  re- 
sign which  I  expect  will  be  y"  case  as  I  am  pretty  certain  Sir 
W  J  will  give  me  leave  to  resign  as  he  must  think  there  is  no 
occasion  for  an  Agent  here  on  Sir  Jeffrey  Armhurst  present 
plan,  so  that  I  expect  every  day  to  hear  that  both  Sir  W  and 
Sir  Jefif  has  aproved  of  my  quiting  y'  Service  as  it  will  save 
something  to  y'  Nation. 

Enclosed  I  send  you  the  small  Account  of  £i2i7.  19.  6. 
with  two  other  vouchers  from  Capt.  Campble  which  I  must 
Request  y"  feavor  of  you  to  prefer  to  Sir  Jeffery  ;  if  he  con- 
descends to  pay  it,  pray  receive  y"  money  and  give  me  Credit 
for  it.  If  he  should  not  aprove  of  those  Vouchers  I  can  do 
no  more  I  must  content  myself  with  the  loss  thereof. 

Nothing  would  give  me  greater  plesher  than  to  go  down 
this  River  as  you  are  honoured  with  the  Command,  but  for 
two  very  weatey  rasons  I  cant  think  of  it  first  my  own  affairs 
will  oblige  me  to  go  to  England  as  soon  as  possible,  y' 
Secondly  is  that  I  am  certain  Sir  Jeffery  Armhurst  will  not 
alow  a  sufisent  quantity  of  presents  to  satisfye  the  Great 
Number  of  Indians  and  before  I  wold  attempt  to  undertake 
y=   Negocieatory  Maters  with  a  Number  of  Indian  Nations 


BOUQUET   PAPERS.  197 

who  has  never  been  aquainted  with  us  but  allways  under  y° 
influences  of  the  French  without  I  could  do  it  with  repetation 
to  my  self  and  ease  to  you.  I  will  run  y'  Resk  of  loosing 
every  thing  I  have  depending  in  England  and  content  my- 
self at  y'  tail  of  a  plow,  some  where  on  y"  frontier. 

Captain  Ecuyer  and  my  self  has  done  every  thing  in  our 
power  to  get  as  many  Vouchers  as  was  posable  here  for  y 
Account  which  you  will  receive  from  Captain  Ecuyer  by  this 
Express.      I  am  dear  Sir  with  great  Esteem  and 

Regard  y'  Most  Humble  Servant 
George  Croghan. 


Carlisle,  June  8,  1763. 
Dear  Sir 

By  this  Express  you  will  receive  y'  Inteligence  of  Mn 
Colhoon  by  which  it  apears  that  y°  Dalaways  have  all 
declared  against  us,  as  you  have  known  my  opinion  on  this 
head,  some  time  ago,  I  need  say  Nothing  now  on  ye  subject 

as  it  will  not  bear  Laffing  at  as  usual  by  his .     I  have 

wrote  Sir  William  Johnson  and  inclosed  a  Copy  of  y'  Intelli- 
gence which  you  will  plese  to  forward. 

Plese  to  acquaint  Governor  Hamilton  that  I  have  heard 
this  Evening  that  Col.  Bird  and  Captain  McKee  have  not 
proceeded  to  dispossess  the  New  England  people  having 
received  an  account  from  Fort  Augusta  that  y"  Indians  on 
Susquehanna  have  summoned  y'  Garrison  to  remove  or  that 
they  would  cut  them  off. 

I  will  proceed  tomorrow  for  Bedford  and  endeavour  to  get 
some  men  to  escort  y'  Powder  and  Lead  up  there. 

I  am  D'  S' 

y  Most  Humble  Servt 
George  Croghan. 


igS  CHRISTOPHER   GIST'S   JOURNALS. 

Shippensburgh,  June  ii,  1763.' 

Yesterday  and  this  Day  a  report  prevailed  in  this  County 
that  all  the  People  in  the  Path  Valley  were  murdered  by  the 
Indians  and  their  Houses  burned,  and  that  Fort  Ligonier  was 
likewise  taken  and  burned,  the  people  in  General  was  flying 
from  their  Habitations  but  just  now  I  received  a  letter  from 
Bedford  by  which  I  find  that  the  Indians  had  not  prevailed 
against  Ligonier,  tho'  they  had  fired  some  Shot  at  the  Fort, 
and  two  men  is  corhe  from  the  Path  Valley,  who  say  that  no 
Indians  has  appeared  there  as  yet  but  say  the  People  there 
are  very  much  alarmed. 

I  have  endeavoured  to  settle  the  minds  of  the  People  as 
much  as  possible  and  most  of  them  are  returned  to  their 
Houses. 

As  I  was  apprehensive  that  some  scouting  Party  of  Indians 
might  come  down  and  burn  Fort  Lyttleton  in  order  to  shut 
up  the  Communication  and  in  order  to  quiet  the  Inhabitants 
I  have  engaged  twenty  five  Men  at  45'  per  month  with  one 
(officer)  to  command  them,  to  garrison  it  for  one  month  and 
furnished  Provisions  and  some  Powder  and  Lead  for  them, 
which  I  hope  will  meet  with  General  Amhersts  approbation 
and  requests  the  favour  of  you  to  make  him  acquainted  with 
it.  If  he  should  aprove  of  this  step  I  hope  he  will  (give 
orders)  for  paying  the  expences  or  continuing  them  longer  (as 
he  may)  think  proper.  Tomorrow  I  set  off  with  them  to 
Fort  Lytleton,  and  request  you  will  let  me  know  the  Generals 
answer,  that  if  the  Expence  of  these  Men  (should  fall  on) 
myself  I  may  discharge  them  when  the  month  is  out. 

The  Justices  of  this  County  has  been  these  three  Days 

endeavouring  to  get  some  Volunteers  to  escort  the  Powder 

and  Lead  to  Bedford,  but  could  not  get  any.     It  is  at  Loudon 

and  I  believe  I  shall  be  obliged  to  hire  men  there  to  escort  it 

'  This  document  very  much  mutilated  and  stained. 


BOUQUET  PAPERS.  199 

up.  Pray  mention  these  Expences  to  the  General  as  it  will 
fall  very  heavy  on  me  if  he  should  not  approve  of  it  and  pay 
the  expences.  It  appears  to  me  from  all  the  Letters  I  have 
from  Fort  Pitt  that  no  Indians  seem  to  have  committed  any 
Hostilities  thereabouts  but  the  Delawares,  and  from  the 
(  )  speeches  of  the  Beaver  and  his  Council  to  Calhoun 

it  seems  as  if  they  intend  to  deny  that  they  were  conserned 
with  this  great  Breach  of  faith  Should  their  (  )  miscarry 

and  not  be  able  to  accomplish  their  design  and  so  solicit  their 
pardon.  As  to  the  Accounts  of  Detroit  being  attacked  by 
the  Ottaways  and  Cheepaways  we  have  nothing  for  it  but 
what  the  Delawares  tell  us  and  by  all  accounts  from  Susque- 
hannah  and  Mr.  Hunter's  Letter  to  Col.  Burd  from  Fort 
Augusta  it  appears  to  me  that  the  Susquehannah  Indians 
was  not  aquainted  with  the  (combat)  about  the  2d  or  3d  of 
this  Month  when  a  Delaware  Indian  brought  the  accounts 
from  Ohio  to  the  great  Island  but  it  is  probable  that  the 
other  nations  will  join  the  Delawares  if  they  are  successful 
against  the  small  out  Posts  and  then  no  doubt  they  will  fall 
upon  the  Frontiers  without  they  meet  a  sufficient  check  soon. 
As  to  Detroit  if  those  nations  which  the  Delawares  say  had 
attacked  it  prove  so,  it  must  fall,  as  the  works  are  very  large, 
without  the  French  engage  heartily  and  assist  the  Troops, 
which  I  fear  they  will  not,  as  I  have  been  convinced  near 
these  twelve  months  past  that  the  French  at  the  Ilinois  has 
been  spiriting  up  the  Indians  to  cut  off  our  out  Posts ;  all 
which  Intelligence  you  know  I  sent  to  General  Amherst. 

I  had  no  doubt  the  French  at  Detroit  were  privately  con- 
cerned with  the  designs  of  the  Ottaways  and  Cheepaways  as 
they  have  great  influence  over  those  Nations. 

(Signature  illegible.) 

To  Col.  Henry  Bouquet. 


200  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

Fort  Bedford,  June  17,  1763. 
Dear  Sir 

I  just  now  received  your  favour  of  y'  14th.  As  the  man 
who  carry s  it  to  Carlisle  is  just  setting  off,  I  have  only  time  to 
acknowledge  y'  receipt  of  it.  I  wrote  you  from  Shipensberge 
y'  eleventh,  to  which  I  must  refer  you  for  my  opinion  of  the 
Indians  behaviour  at  this  time  till  I  hear  from  Fort  Pitt ;  as  no 
Express  has  come  down  this  twelve  days,  I  have  reason  to 
think  y'  place  is  invested,  so  that  none  can  safely  escape  them ; 
but  they  can  no  longer  continue  there,  in  my  opinion  than 
y"  few  cattle  there  abouts,  which  may  fall  into  their  way  can 
suport  them.  The  Dallaways  in  my  opinion  are  y°  people 
who  has  begun  this  Indian  war,  and  if  y'  Ottaways  and  Cheep- 
ways  has  attackt  Detroit  I  believe  it  will  be  found  that  y° 
French  was  acquainted  with  their  designs.  I  imagine 
y  Dallaways  will  remove  over  y"  Lakes  or  over  the  Missis- 
sippi, perhaps  this  may  be  a  stroke  of  Policy  in  the  French 
to  get  as  many  Indian  Nations  as  they  can  to  go  to  y'  country 
over  Mississippi,  which  they  have  to  people  as  well  to  make 
themselves  respectable  with  their  Indian  Allies  as  to  secure 
as  much  of  the  Indian  Trade  as  they  can.  The  Dallaways  you 
are  sensible  have  not  behaved  so  well  as  they  did  before  Post 
went  among  them,  to  his  Majesty's  Troops  and  since  the  last 
Treaty  at  Lancaster,  they  may  be  said  to  have  behaved  with 
insolence  ;  this  you  are  well  acquainted  with  and  I  wish  y' 
Quakers  may  not  find  that  their  interfering  with  Indian  affairs 
may  have  done  more  hurt  to  his  Majestys  Indian  Interest  and 
given  them  a  greater  dislike  to  his  troops  than  any  settle- 
ments that  I  or  any  other  people  have  made  there. 

I  am  of  opinion  that  if  the  Six  Nations  knew  any  thing 
of  this  Eruption,  they  kept  it  secret  in  order  to  break  off  any 
connections  between  us  and  y'  Dallaways,  as  I  am  certain 
they  have  been  for  some  years  past  very  jealous  of  the  Dalla- 


BOUQUET   PAPERS.  201 

ways  being  raised  so  high  by  y°  Quakers  of  Philadelphia  ;  how- 
ever time  will  evince  to  y°  publick  whether  I  have  acted  with 
imprudence  in  my  Department  or  not  as  far  as  I  was  limited. 
I  wish  y*  General  would  permit  me  to  send  one  of  those 
Indians  here  for  intelligence,  as  it  is  the  only  way  left  us  to 
find  out  who  are  concerned  against  us,  for  was  I  now  at  Fort 
Pitt  I  could  not  have  so  good  an  opportunity. 
I  am  dear  Sir  your  most 

Humble  servant 

George  Croghan. 


Off 


>4 


BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH  OF  COL  THOMAS 

CRESAP. 


October  31,  1750. — Colonel  Thomas  Cresap  was  the  earliest 
permanent  settler  in  Western  Maryland.  H  e  established  him- 
self at  Old  Town  in  1742  or  3.  At  the  treaty  made  at  Lan- 
caster, Pennsylvania,  with  the  Six  Nations,  in  June,  1744,  the 
Chief  Cannassatego  in  his  speech  said :  "  We  are  willing  to 
renounce  all  right  to  Lord  Baltimore  of  all  those  Lands  lying 
two  miles  above  the  uppermost  Fork  of  Potowmack  or  Cohon- 
goruton  river  near  which  Thomas  Cresap  has  a  Hunting  or 
Trading  Cabin,  by  a  North  line  to  the  bounds  of  Pennsyl- 
vania." ' 

Cresap's  cabin  or  fort  was  on  or  near  the  site  of  an  old  town 
of  the  Shawanese,  a  portion  of  that  tribe  inhabiting  in  and 
about  the  northern  part  of  the  river  Potomac  from  1698  to 
1728-9,  when  they  removed  to  the  Ohio  and  Allegheny  and 
placed  themselves  under  the  protection  of  the  French.^  On 
the  map  constructed  by  William  Mayo  for  Lord  Fairfax,  in 
1737,  the  bottom  lands  on  this  part  of  the  Potomac  are  marked 
"  Old  Shawnee  fields  deserted."  Also  on  Fry  and  Jefferson's, 
and  Scull's  maps.  Its  locality  is  marked  on  Dr.  Mitchell's  map 
of  1755  "  Shawnee  Old  Town."  In  the  Table  of  Distances 
to  Ohio  in  1754,''  the  first  is  "  New  Store  at  the  mouth  of 
Wills  creek  on  Potomack  to  Cressaps  fifteen  miles."  The 
name  Old  Town  is  yet  retained ;  it  is  in  Old  Town  District 

' "  Treaty  at  Lancaster  with  the  Six  Nations."     "  Colonial  Records." 
*  "  Report  of  Assembly,  Journals  of  lyss" 
'  "  Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Vol.  II,  p.  134. 

(202) 


BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCH   OF   COL.    THOMAS   CRESAP.        203 

of  Allegheny  County,  Maryland,  fifteen  miles  southeast  of 
Cumberland,  on  the  north  side  of  the  Potomac  and  opposite  to 
Green  Spring  station,  on  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railway. 

Colonel  Thomas  Cresap  was  a  native  of  Skipton,  in  York- 
shire, England.  He  emigrated  to  Maryland  about  the  year 
1720,  when  he  was  but  fifteen  years  of  age.  He  first  settled 
at  Havre  de  Grace,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Susquehanna  River. 
Lord  Baltimore,  the  Proprietary  of  Maryland,  claiming  to 
extend  the  boundaries  of  that  Province  to  the  fortieth  degree 
of  latitude,  Cresap  obtained  a  Maryland  warrant  for  500 
acres,  and  about  the  year  173 1  removed  to  the  locality  of  his 
grant,  over  twenty  miles  north  of  the  present  boundary-line 
between  Pennsylvania  and  Maryland,  at  the  ferry-landing  op- 
posite the  "  Blue  Rock,"  about  five  miles  below  the  present 
town  of  Wrightsville,  on  the  Susquehanna,  in  York  County. 

Cresap' s  house  is  marked  on  Evans'  map  of  Pennsylvania, 
1749.  His  house  was  the  most  northerly  situated  of  the 
Maryland  claimants,  of  whom  he  was  the  leader,  being  a  man 
of  great  strength,  courage  and  indomitable  resolution. 
Violent  and  bloody  collisions  frequently  occurred  between  the 
Pennsylvanians  and  Marylanders.  On  November  24,  1736, 
Cresap's  house  or  fort  was  surrounded  by  an  armed  company 
of  twenty-three  men,  headed  by  the  Sheriff  of  Lancaster 
County  with  a  judge's  warrant.'  After  a  sharp  conflict 
Cresap's  capture  was  only  effected  by  burning  the  house.  He 
was  ironed,  taken  to  Philadelphia  and  there  imprisoned  for 
near  two  years.  Reprisals  by  the  authorities  of  Maryland 
speedily  followed. 

This  bitter  border  warfare  was  allayed  by  an  order  of  the 
King,  in  Council,  May  25,  1738.  The  prisoners  of  both 
Provinces  were  released  and  a  provisional  boundary-line  es- 
tablished in  1739."    It  continued  to  be  the  subject  of  protracted 

*"  Pennsylvania  Archvies." 
' "  Pennsylvania  Archives." 


204  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

litigation  between  the  Penns  and  Lord  Baltimore  before  the 
High  Court  of  Chancery,  in  England.  The  controversy  was 
conclusively  settled  by  amicable  agreement  and  the  running  of 
the  famous  Mason  and  Dixon's  Line,  in  1769,  and  its  comple- 
tion, in  1784.  A  full  and  complete  history  of  this  boundary 
controversy  would  make  a  large  but  interesting  volume.' 

Col.  Cresap  was  by  nature  well  adapted  for  a  leader  in  border 
contests.  He  seemed  as  one  "born  unto  trouble,"  certainly 
he  never  shunned  it.  Originally  a  carpenter,  afterwards  a 
surveyor,  planter  and  Indian  trader,  as  well  as  Indian  fighter.'' 
He  made  an  excellent  map  of  the  western  boundary  of  Mary- 
land for  Lord  Baltimore,  which  is  now  in  the  possession  of 
the  Maryland  Historical  Society.  Soon  after  his  return  from 
captivity,  in  Philadelphia,  in  1737  or  8,  he  removed  to  a  tract 
of  land  on  the  Antietam  Creek,  in  the  present  Washington 
County,  Maryland,  and  engaged  in  the  Indian  trade  and  failed. 
He  then  fixed  his  residence  at  Old  Town,  or  Skipton,  as  he 
named  it.  He  was  an  agent  for  the  Ohio  Company  and  also 
a  member  of  it.'  This  Company  made  the  first  English 
settlement  at  Pittsburgh,  before  Braddock's  war  ;  and  it  was 
through  their  means  and  efforts  that  the  first  road  was  made 
through  the  Allegheny  Mountains.  The  war  placed  Col. 
Cresap  in  a  perilous  situation,  and  he  removed  his  family  to 
Conococheague ;  he  had  to  fight  his  way,  being  attacked  by  a 

'  See  the  printed  "  Case  of  Messieurs  Penn  and  the  people  of  Pennsyl- 
vania and  the  three  lower  Counties  of  New  Castle,  Kent  and  Sussex  on 
Delaware,  in  relation  to  a  series  of  Injuries  and  Hostilities  made  upon 
them,  for  several  years  past,  by  Thomas  Cresap  and  others  by  the  Direc- 
tion and  Authority  of  the  Deputy  Governor  of  Maryland."  To  be  heard 
before  the  Honorable  Lords  of  the  Privy  Council  for  Plantation  affairs  at 
the  Cockpit,  White  Hall,  on  Thursday  23d  February  1737.  "Colonial 
Records."    "  Pennsylvania  Archives." 

^  "  Pennsylvania  Archives,"  Vol.  l,pp.  311-52. 

•''  See  "  Sketch  of  the  Ohio  Company." 


LETTER    FROM   THOS.    JEFFERSON   TO   GEN.    GIBSON.        20$ 

party  of  Indians.  He  soon  raised  a  company  of  volunteers 
and  marched  to  attack  the  Indians  ;  his  son,  Thomas,  was 
killed  in  their  first  skirmish.  Soon  after,  peace  was  made  and 
he  returned  to  his  farm  at  Old  Town. 

Col.  Cresap's  literary  attainments  were  small,  but  by  indus- 
try and  application  he  obtained  a  sufficient  knowledge  of  sur- 
veying to  be  entrusted  with  the  surveyorship  of  Prince  George's 
County,  and  frequently  represented  his  county  in  the  Legis- 
lature. When  he  was  upwards  of  eighty  he  married  for  the 
second  time.  He  had  five  children — three  sons  and  two 
daughters.  His  youngest  son  was  Michael,  who  was  repre- 
sented by  Mr.  Jefferson,  most  probably  unjustly,  "  as  infamous 
for  his  many  Indian  murders  and  the  massacre  of  Logan's 
family." ' 


COPY  OF  ORIGINAL  LETTER  FROM  THOMAS  JEFFERSON 
TO  GENERAL  JOHN  GIBSON. 


Presented  by  Gen.  Gibson's  Daughter  to  Wm.  Robinson. 


Philadelphia,  Dec.  31,  1797. 
Dear  Sir: 

I  took  the  liberty  the  last  summer  of  writing  to  you  from 
hence,  making  some  enquiries  on  the  subject  of  Logan's  Speech, 
and  the  murder  of  his  family,  and  you  were  kind  enough  in 
your  answer  among  other  things,  to  correct  the  title  of  Cresap 
who  is  said  to  have  headed  the  party,  by  observing  that  he 
was  a  Capt  and  not  a  Col.  I  trouble  you  with  a  second  letter 
asking  if  you  could  explain  to  me  how  Logan  came  to  call  him 
Col.     If  you  have  favored  me  with  an  answer  to  this  it  has 

'  See  "  Biographical  Sketch  of  the  Life  of  the  late  Captain  Michael  Cre- 
sap," by  Jacobs. 


206  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's  JOURNALS. 

miscarried,  I  therefore  trouble  you  again  on  the  subject,  and 
as  the  transaction  must  have  been  familiar  to  you,  I  will  ask 
the  favor  of  you  to  give  me  the  names  and  residence,  of  any 
persons  now  living  who  you  think  were  of  Cresap's  party,  or 
who  can  prove  his  participation  in  this  transaction  either  by 
direct  evidence  or  from  circumstances,  or  who  can  otherwise 
throw  light  on  the  fact.  A  Mr  Martin'  of  Baltimore  has  ques- 
tioned the  whole  transaction,  suggesting  Logan's  Speech  to 
be  not  genuine,  and  denying  that  either  Col  or  Capt  Cresap 
had  any  hand  in  the  murder'  of  his  family.  I  do  not  intend  to 
enter  into  any  newspaper  contest  with  Mr  Martin  ;  but  in  the 
first  republication  of  the  notes  on  Virginia  to  correct  the 
Statement  where  it  is  wrong  and  support  it  where  it  is  right. 
My  distance  from  the  place  where  witnesses  of  the  trans- 
actions reside  is  so  great,  that  it  will  be  a  lengthy  and  imper- 
fect operation  in  my  hands.  Any  aid  you  can  give  me  in  it 
will  be  most  thankfully  received.  I  avail  myself  with  great 
pleasure  of  every  occasion  of  recalling  myself  to  your  recol- 
lection, and  of  assuring  you  of  the  sentiments  of  esteem  and 
attachment  with  which  I  am 

dear  Sir,  your  most  obedt  and 
humble  Servt 

Th.  Jefferson. 

'  Luther  Martin,  Attorney-General  of  Maryland,  married  a  daughter  of 
Captain  Cresap. 


GENERAL  JAMES  GRANT, 

OF   BALLINDALLOCH. 


An  extensive  landed  estate,  with  a  castle  and  village,  at  the 
confluence  of  the  Avon  and  Spey,  Parish  of  Inveravon,  Banff- 
shire, Highlands  of  Scotland,  where  a  large  district  of  the 
present  counties  of  Elgin  and  Banff — ancient  Morayshire — 
was  long  known  as  the  country  of  the  Grants  or  people  of 
Strathspey,  one  of  the  most  ancient  Highland  clans.  The 
chiefs  and  most  of  the  clansmen  were  Whigs,  and  supporters 
of  the  House  of  Hanover,  in  opposition  to  the  Stuarts.  After 
studying  law  James  Grant  entered  the  army  in  1 741,  as  En- 
sign, at  the  age  of  twenty-two,  and  became  Captain  in  the  ist 
Battalion,  ist  Royal  Scots,  October  24,  1744.  In  1747  he 
was  appointed  aid  to  General  James  St.  Clair,  Ambassador 
to  the  Courts  of  Vienna  and  Turin.  David  Hume,  the  histor- 
ian, was  Secretary  to  the  Embassy.  Captain  Grant  served  in 
the  wars  in  the  Netherlands. 

In  January,  1757,  he  was  commissioned  Major  of  the  new 
77th  Regiment,  ist  Battalion,  known  as  Montgomery  High- 
landers, commanded  by  Lieutenent-Colonel  Archibald  Mont- 
gomery, afterwards  Earl  of  Eglintown.  They  were  ordered  to 
America,  and  sailed  from  Cork,  Ireland,  and  arrived  at  Halifax, 
America,  in  August.'  Sailed  for  Charleston,  South  Carolina, 
arriving  there  September  29th,  having  been  ordered  there  with 
a  portion  of  the  Royal  Americans,  in  apprehension  of  an  attack 
by  the  French,  from  the  West  Indies.  In  1758  the  regiment 
arrived  at  Philadelphia  from  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  and 

'  "  Pennsylvania  Gazette."    "  Scot's  Magazine." 

(107) 


208  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

encamped  beyond  the  new  barracks.  A  few  days  afterwards 
they  were  reviewed  by  General  Forbes,  in  the  presence  of  a 
great  number  of  people,  who  were  highly  gratified  by  the  dis- 
play, the  fine  militaryappearanceof  the  troops  and  the  novelty 
of  their  dress.  General  Forbes,  in  command  of  the  Southern 
Department,  was  engaged  in  assembling  an  army  in  Philadel- 
phia, intended  for  the  capture  of  Fort  Du  Quesne. 

1758. — In  September,  Major  Grant  was  sent  with  eight 
hundred  men  to  reconnoitre  the  fort.  Dividing  his  force,  to 
draw  the  enemy  into  an  ambuscade,  he  was  himself  surprised 
and  defeated,  with  a  loss  of  a  third  of  his  party  killed,  wounded 
and  missing.  Grant  and  nineteen  officers  were  captured.'  He 
became  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  the  40th  Foot  in  1760,  and  was 
appointed  Governor  of  East  Florida.  In  1761  he  was  des- 
patched by  General  Amherst,  with  a  force  of  thirteen  hun- 
dred Regulars,  against  the  Indians  of  Carolina.' 

Grant  succeeded  to  the  family  estate  on  the  death  of  his 
nephew.  Major  William  Grant.  In  1772  he  became  Brevet- 
Colonel  ;  in  1773  he  was  returned  to  Parliament  for  Wick- 
burghs,  and  at  the  general  election  of  the  year  after  for 
Sutherlandshire.  In  December,  1775,  he  was  appointed  Col- 
onel of  the  S5th  Foot.  In  1776  Grant  went  as  a  Brigadier  to 
America,  with  the  reinforcement  under  General  Howe.  He 
commanded  two  British  brigades  at  the  battle  of  Long  Island, 
was  employed  by  Lord  Howe  on  special  services  in  New 
Jersey,  accompanied  the  army  to  Philadelphia,  and  commanded 
the  1st  and  2d  Brigades  of  British  at  the  battles  of  Brandy- 
wine  and  Germantown.' 

In  May,  1778,  he  was  sent  with  a  strong  force  to  cut  off 
Lafayette,  but  was  unsuccessful.     He  commanded  the  force 

1  See  letter  in  "  Fort  Pitt." 

'  Cherokees. 

'  Letters  of  Grant. 


GENERAL  JAMES  GRANT.  209 

sent  from  New  York  to  the  West  Indies,  which  captured  St. 
Lucia  in  December,  1778,  and  defended  the  island  against  an 
attempt  to  recapture  it,  made  by  a  French  force  under  the 
Count  d'Estaing. 

Grant  became  a  Major-General  in  1777,  Lieutenant-General 
in  1782,  General,  in  1796.  He  was  transferred  from  the  55th 
to  the  nth  Foot,  in  1791,  and  was  Governor,  in  succession,  of 
Dumbarton  and  Stirling  Castles.  He  was  noted  for  his  love 
of  good  living  and  became  immensely  corpulent. 

He  died  at  Ballindalloch,  April  13,  1806,  in  his  eighty-sixth 
year.  Having  no  descendants  his  estate  went  to  his  grand- 
nephew,  George  Macpherson,  who  assumed  the  surname  of 
Grant' 

'  Anderson's  "  Scottish  Nation." 


GUYASUTA  (KIASUTHA.) 


A  Seneca  chief,  one  of  the  Indians  who  accompanied 
Washington  from  Logstown  to  Venango  and  LeBoeuf  as  a 
guard  in  1753,  mentioned  by  Washington  as  the  young 
hunter  and  by  Gist  as  a  "young  warrior."  After  the  defeat 
of  Braddock  the  Indians  generally  went  over  to  the  French. 

Guyasuta  with  a  party  of  twenty  Senecas  visited  Montreal 
with  Joncaire,  the  interpreter.  At  the  castle  of  Montreal 
the  Indians  were  received  in  the  council  chamber  with  much 
ceremony  by  the  Governor  of  Canada,  the  Marquis  de 
Vaudreuil,  and  council.  Guyasuta,  chief  and  orator  of  the 
Senecas,  addressed  Vaudreuil.  They  remained  all  winter  in 
the  neighborhood,  it  being  too  late  to  return  home.  He  was 
with  the  Indians  when  they,  with  the  French,  defeated  Grant, 
in  1758. 

Guyasuta,  two  other  chiefs  and  sixteen  warriors  of  the  Six 
Nations,  a  large  number  of  Delawares,  Shawanese  and 
Wyandots  assembled  at  Pittsburgh  in  July,  1759,  and  held  a 
conference  lasting  a  week,  with  George  Croghan,  Sir  William 
Johnson's  Deputy  Indian  Agent,  Colonel  Hugh  Mercer,  com- 
mandant, and  the  officers  of  Fort  Pitt.  Most  of  the  Indians 
had  been  allied  to  the  French,  and  this  was  their  first  treaty 
with  the  English  subsequent  to  the  capture  of  Fort  Du 
Quesne,  in  November  preceding. 

In  August,  1762,  at  the  conference  with  the  western 
Indians  at  Lancaster,  Thomas  King,  in  behalf  of  the  chiefs 
of  the  Six  Nations  in  his  speech  before  the  council  said : 
"  We  want  a  little  lad  that  lives  among  you ;  he  is  Kiasuta's 

(210) 


GUYASUTA    (KIASUTHA.)  211 

(Guyasuta)  son.  The  father  ordered  that  he  should  live  at 
Philadelphia,  in  order  to  learn  English,  to  be  an  interpreter. 
We  think  by  this  time  he  has  learned  it,  and  we  now  think  it 
time  for  him  to  come  home.  His  relations  that  are  present, 
desire  that  he  may  now  go  home  with  them."  On  August  27th, 
the  Governor  replied :  "  The  little  boy,  Kiasuta's  son,  is,  I 
hope,  on  his  way  here,  having  sent  for  him  to  Philadelphia." 

At  a  treaty  held  at  Fort  Pitt,  in  May,  1768,  Keyashuta 
(Guyasuta)  rose  with  a  copy  of  the  "  Treaty  of  1764  with  Col. 
Bradstreet"  in  his  hand,  and  addressing  the  commissioners 
said:  "By  this  treaty  we  agreed  that  you  had  a  right  to 
build  forts  and  trading-houses  where  you  pleased,  and  to 
travel  the  road  of  peace  from  the  sun  rising  to  the  sun  setting. 
At  that  treaty  the  Shawanese  and  Delawares  were  with  me, 
and  know  all  this  well,  and  I  am  surprised  they  should  speak 
to  you  as  they  did  yesterday."  He  had  been  present  at  this 
treaty  with  fifteen  warriors,  and  was  one  of  the  orators ; 
Turtle  Heart,  Custaloga,  and  Beaver  were  the  others.  He 
desired  the  several  nations  "  to  be  strong  in  complying  with 
their  engagements,  that  they  might  wipe  away  the  reproach 
of  their  former  breach  of  faith,  and  convince  their  brothers 
the  English  that  they  could  speak  the  truth,"  adding  that  he 
would  conduct  the  army  to  the  place  appointed  for  receiving 
the  prisoners. 

On  November  9,  Col.  Bouquet,  attended  by  most  of  the 
principal  officers,  went  to  the  conference-house.  The  Senecas 
and  Delawares  were. first  treated  with.  Kiashuta  and  ten  war- 
riors represented  the  former ;  Custaloga  and  twenty  warriors 
the  latter.  Kiashuta  addressed  the  conference  and  was  an- 
swered by  Col.  Bouquet.  In  Washington's  "Tour  to  the  Ohio 
in  1770"  :  "  When  encamped  opposite  the  mouth  of  the  Great 
Hockhocking  we  found  Kiasutha  and  his  hunting  party 
encamped.     Here  we  were  under  a  necessity  of  paying  our 


212  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

compliments,  as  this  person  was  one  of  the  Six  Nation  chiefs 
and  the  head  of  those  upon  this  River.  In  the  person  of 
Kiashuta  I  found  an  old  acquaintance,  he  being  one  of  the 
Indians  that  went  with  me  to  the  French  in  1753." 

May,  1774. — -A  meeting  was  held  at  Col.  Croghan's  house, 
Ligonier,  at  which  were  present  Guyasutha,  White  Mingo 
and  the  Six  Nation  Deputies.  Guyasutha  was  one  of  the 
orators. 

July,  1776,  he  was  present  at  a  conference  at  Fort  Pitt  and 
was  one  of  the  orators.  He  was  in  command  of  one  of  the 
parties  of  Indians  that  in  July,  1782,  made  the  attack  on 
Hannastown  and  burned  it. 


THE  SPEECH  OF  GUYASUTA, 

An  Ancient  Chief  of  the  Seneca  Nation,  on  the  Borders 
OF  Pennsylvania,  as  given  in  charge  by  him  to  one  of 
THE  Sachems  of  that  Nation  in  the  Year  1790,  to  be 
Delivered  to  the  Friends  of  Philadelphia. 

Brothers:  The  Sons  of  my  beloved  Brother  Onas.'  When 
I  was  young  and  strong  our  country  was  full  of  game,  which 
the  Good  Spirit  sent  for  us  to  live  upon.  The  lands  which 
belonged  to  us  were  extended  far  beyond  where  we  hunted. 
I  and  the  people  of  my  nation  had  enough  to  eat  and  always 
something  to  give  to  our  friends  when  they  entered  our 
cabins ;  and  we  rejoiced  when  they  received  it  from  us  ;  hunt- 
ing was  then  not  tiresome,  it  was  diversion ;  it  was  a  pleasure. 

Brothers :  When  your  fathers  asked  land  from  my  nation, 
we  gave  it  to  them,  for  we  had  more  than  enough.  Guyasuta 
was  amongst  the  first  of  the  people  to  say,  "  Give  land  to  our 
brother  Onas  for  he  wants  it,"  and  he  has  always  been  a 
friend  to  Onas  and  to  his  children. 

•  Penn. 


THE   SPEECH    OK    GUYASUTA.  213 

Brothers :  Your  fathers  saw  Guyasuta  when  he  was  young ; 
when  he  had  not  even  thought  of  old  age  or  weakness  ;  but 
you  are  too  far  off  to  see  him,  now  he  is  grown  old.  He  is 
very  old  and  feeble,  and  he  wonders  at  his  own  shadow,  it  is 
become  so  little.  He  has  no  children  to  take  care  of  him, 
and  the  game  is  driven  away  by  the  white  people ;  so  that 
the  young  men  must  hunt  all  day  long  to  find  game  for  them- 
selves to  eat ;  they  have  nothing  left  for  Guyasuta ;  and  it  is 
not  Guyasuta  only  who  is  become  old  and  feeble,  there  yet 
remain  about  thirty  men  of  your  old  friends,  who,  unable  to 
provide  for  themselves  or  to  help  one  another,  are  become 
poor  and  are  hungry  and  naked. 

Brothers:  Guyasuta  sends  you  a  belt  which  he  received 
long  ago  from  your  fathers,  and  a  writing  which  he  received 
but  as  yesterday  from  one  of  you.  By  these  you  will  remem- 
ber him  and  the  old  friends  of  your  fathers  in  this  nation. 
Look  on  this  belt  and  this  writing,  and  if  you  remember  the 
old  friends  of  your  fathers,  consider  their  former  friendship 
and  their  present  distress  ;  and  if  the  Good  Spirit  shall  put 
it  in  your  hearts  to  comfort  them  in  their  old  age,  do  not  dis- 
regard his  council.  We  are  men  and  therefore  need  only  tell 
you  that  we  are  old  and  feeble  and  hungry  and  naked;  and 
that  we  have  no  other  friends  but  you,  the  children  of  our 
beloved  brother  Onas. 


THE  TESTIMONY  OF  SIMON  GIRTY. 


To  Colonel  George  Morgan. 

On  or  about  the  9th  of  November  last  I  was  sent  by  Gen- 
eral Hand  to  Connewago,  a  Seneca  Town  on  the  Allegany 
River,  with  a  friendly  Message  to  the  Six  Nations.  I  arrived 
there  the  14th  of  November  and  after  executing  my  orders 
waited  there  till  the  24th  of  the  Month.  During  my  stay 
there,  Conengayote  or  the  White  Mingo,  returned  from  Nia- 
gara with  a  Horse  load  of  Goods,  which  he  told  me  he  had 
purchased  for  Horses  he  had  stole  from  near  Ligonier  in  Penn- 
sylvania about  the  month  of last,  at  which  time  he  and 

his  Party  killed  four  Men.  On  or  about  the  23d  of  November 
Co,  CO,  caw,  can,  keteda  or  the  Flying  Crow,  with  twenty  five 
Warriors  of  the  Senecas  of  the  Turtle  Tribe,  among  whom 
were  Joneowentashaun  and  Coneotahanck  or  the  Leaf,  (War 
Chief)  arrived  at  Connewago  with  two  scalps,  and  a  Woman 
they  had  taken  Prisoner  about  fifteen  days  before  from  near 
Ligonier  aforesaid.  On  conversing  with  her  and  with  the 
Indians,  I  was  informed  that  the  Indians  had  killed  and  scalped 
her  Husband,  Forbes,  and  had  beat  out  the  brains  of  their 
only  Child  against  a  Tree  in  the  Road. 

Kushgwehgo  or  Full  Face,  and  twenty  seven  others  of  the 
Senecas  of  the  Eagle  Tribe,  had  been  to  war  against  the 
people  of  Pennsylvania  East  of  the  Alleghany  Mountain  (I 
understood  in  Bedford  County) ;  they  were  out  eighteen  days 
when  I  arrived  at  the  Town ;  they  were  daily  expected  back 

(214) 


THE   TESTIMONY   OF   SIMON    GIRTY.  215 

when  I  came  away.  Two  Prisoners  the  Senecas  had  taken 
from  Pennsylvania  they  had  put  to  death  in  one  of  their 
upper  Towns. 

Old  Keyashuta  (Guyasuta)  is  now  among  our  warmest 
Enemies.  He  and  the  others  say  they  have  been  deceived  or 
treated  ill  at  Fort  Pitt,  and  that  the  Americans  intend  to  cheat 
them  of  their  Lands,  for  which  reason  they  have  now  deter- 
mined to  join  the  King  of  England's  Troops  agreeable  to  the 
repeated  Invitations  of  Col.  Butler  and  the  Commanding 
Officer  at  Niagara  &c,  who  have  on  that  condition  promised 
to  supply  them  and  their  women  and  children  with  every 
necessary ;  wherefore  they  were  determined  to  exert  them- 
selves in  committing  Hostilities  against  the  Frontier  Inhabi- 
tants early  in  the  Spring,  with  all  their  Abilities  and  this  I  am 
persuaded  they  will  do  unless  Keyenguatah,  (General  Schuy- 
ler's great  Friend)  who  fought  on  the  side  of  the  English  at 
Fort  Schuyler,  should  alter  his  conduct  and  order  them  to  sit 
still ;  for  they  have  agreed  to  be  directed  by  him  and  so  have 
all  the  Six  Nations.  The  Indians  had  not  heard  of  General 
Burgoyne's  defeat  or  of  his  Army's  being  made  Prisoners,  nor 
would  they  believe  me  when  I  informed  them  thereof.  Keya- 
shuta informed  me  that  a  Party  of  seventy  two,  consisting  of 
Indians  and  twenty  five  Whitemen  from  Detroit,  and  some 
Delaware  and  Munsies  from  Guyahoga,  had  been  to  war 
against  the  Inhabitants  of  Pennsylvania  (I  understand  north 
of  Ligonier)  and  had  taken  two  Scalps  at  a  Fort  near  Con- 
nemaugh,  where  they  lost  the  Commanding  Officer  who  was 
killed  from  the  Fort.  Joneowentashaun  told  me  the  English 
had  lately  erected  a  Store  House  at  Guyahoga,  to  supply  all 
the  Indians  in  that  Neighbourhood  with  every  necessary  to 
enable  them  to  commit  Hostilities  against  the  Frontier  In- 
habitants of  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia. 

The  Indians  after  consulting  together,  informed  me  that  I 


2l6  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

must  go  with  them  to  Niagara,  to  which  I  pretended  to  con- 
sent, and  finding  that  to  be  their  resolution  I  made  my  Escape 
and  arrived  here  the  27th  of  November. 
In  the  presence  of 

John  Boreman. 

his 

Simon  X  Girty. 
mark. 
Pittsburgh,  January  17th,  1778. 

The  Chief  Guyasuta's  interest  in  the  farm,*  now  in  O'Hara 
township,  was  purchased  by  General  O'Hara.  In  a  letter-book 
of  General  O'Hara' s,  mention  is  made  of  provision  sent  to 
Guyasuta,  who  seems  to  have  lived  continuously  at  that  farm 
during  his  last  years,  and  was  buried  there  in  the  Indian 
Mound,  by  General  O'Hara.  The  name  is  spelled  in  many 
ways — Kayashuta,  Guyashutha,  Guashota,  Kia-shuta,  Keya- 
shuta,  Kiyashuta,  Kiasolo. 

Mr.  Craig  writes  in  the  "Olden  Time":  "  We  recollect 
him  well,  have  often  seen  him  about  our  father's  house,  he 
being  still  within  our  memory,  a  stout  active  man."  There 
is  a  picture  of  his  grave  in  "  Fort  Pitt." 

'  The  residence  of  the  family  of  William  M.  Darlington.    M.  C.  D. 


TREATY  OF  LANCASTER. 


At  a  Council  held  at  Philadelphia,  on  October  14,  1736,  by 
Thomas  Penn,  Governor  and  Proprietary  of  Pennsylvania, 
James  Logan,  the  President,  and  members  of  the  Provincial 
Council,  with  the  Chiefs  of  the  Six  Nations,  the  Indians 
requested  that  a  letter  be  written  to  the  Governors  of  Mary- 
land and  Virginia,  requesting  compensation  for  their  lands 
claimed  by  right  of  conquest,  and  upon  which  the  white  set- 
tlers had  intruded,  along  the  Cohongoronto  or  Potomac,  and 
west  of  the  great  Allegheny  mountain  ridge,  on  the  frontiers 
of  Virginia ;  that  being  the  boundary  claimed  by  the  Indians  as 
agreed  upon  with  Governor  Spotswood  in  1722.'  This  demand 
was  renewed,  and  pressed  by  the  Indians  at  the  treaty  held 
at  the  same  city  in  1742;  Canassetego,  the  great  chief  of  the 
Onondagas,  saying  that  if  not  compensated  for  their  lands, 
they  would  take  payment  themselves. 

The  threatening  attitude  of  the  powerful  Six  Nations  or 
Iroquois,  the  war  with  France,  and  the  necessity  of  conciliat- 
ing the  Indians,  occasioned  the  famous  Treaty  of  Lancaster, 
in  1744,  between  the  Confederated  Tribes  and  the  Prov- 
inces of  Virginia,  Maryland  and  Pennsylvania.' 

Thomas  Lee  and  Colonel  William  Beverly  were  the  Com- 
missioners of  Virginia;  Edmund  Jenings,  Philip  Thomas, 
Col.  Robert  King,  and  Col.  Robert  Colville,  of  Maryland. 
Governor  Thomas,  of  Pennsylvania,  presided.  (Thomas  Lee 
was  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court,  and  Councillor  of  State  ; 

'  "  New  York  Colonial  History." 

'  "  Colonial  Records."  Colden's  "  Twelve  Nations." 

»S  (217) 


2l8  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

William  Beverly,  Lieutenant  of  the  county  of  Orange).^ 
There  was  a  warm  discussion,  and  on  the  part  of  the  Indians 
at  least,  a  great  display  of  eloquence. 

The  Virginia  Commissioners  said  to  the  Chiefs  :  "  Tell  us 
what  Nations  of  Indians  you  conquered  any  lands  from  in 
Virginia,  how  long  it  is  since  and  what  Possession  you  have 
had ;  and  if  it  does  appear,  that  there  is  any  land  on  the  Bor- 
ders of  Virginia  that  the  Six  Nations  have  a  Right  to  we  are 
willing  to  make  you  satisfaction."  The  Chief,  Tachanoontia, 
proudly  answered:  "We  have  the  Right  of  Conquest,  a 
Right  too  dearly  purchased  and  which  cost  us  too  much  Blood 
to  give  up  without  any  reason  at  all  as  you  say  we  have  done 
at  Albany.  All  the  World  knows  we  conquered  the  several 
Nations  living  on  the  Susquehannah,  Cohongoronto  (Potomac) 
and  on  the  back  of  the  great  Mountains  in  Virginia.  They 
feel  the  effects  of  our  conquests,  being  now  a  part  of  our 
Nation  and  their  lands  at  our  disposal."  He  admitted  that 
the  Virginia  Colonists  had  conquered  a  certain  tribe  he 
named  and  "  drove  back  the  Tuscaroras  and  on  that  account  a 
right  to  some  part  of  Virginia ;  but,"  he  continued,  "  as  to 
what  lies  beyond  the  mountains  we  conquered  the  Nations 
residing  there  ;  and  that  land  if  the  Virginians  ever  get  a 
good  right  to  it,  it  must  be  by  us." 

The  Commissioners  replied,  "  that  the  great  King  holds  Vir- 
ginia by  right  of  Conquest,  and  the  bounds  of  that  Conquest 
to  the  westward  is  the  great  Sea."  "Though  great  things  are 
well  remembered  among  us,"  said  the  Indians,  "yet  we  don't 
remember  that  we  were  ever  conquered  by  the  Great  King, 
or,  that  we  have  been  employed  by  that  Great  King  to  conquer 
others  ;  if  it  was  so,  it  is  beyond  our  memory." 

After  much  feasting,  drinking,  and  bestowal  of  presents  by 
the  whites,  the  Indians  agreed  to  release  their  claim  to  what 

'  Virginia  State  Papers. 


TREATY   OF   LANCASTER.  219 

is  now  Western  Maryland,  to  Lord  Baltimore,  "as  far  as  two 
miles  above  the  uppermost  Fork  of  the  Potomac  or  Cohon- 
goronto  river  near  which  Thomas  Cresap  has  a  Hunting  or 
Trading  Cabin,"  (at  Old  Town,  fourteen  miles  east  of  Cum- 
berland), in  consideration  of  ;^300,  payable  in  goods.  With 
the  Commissioners  of  Virginia  they  agreed  for  ;^200  in  gold, 
and  goods  to  the  value  of  /'aoo  more,  to  "  immediately  make 
a  Deed  recognizing  the  King's  right  to  all  the  Lands  that  are 
or  shall  be  by  His  Majesty's  appointment  in  the  Colony  of 
Virginia,"  together  with  a  written  promise  of  further  remun- 
eration as  settlements  increased  westward.  With  the  Gov- 
ernor of  Pennsylvania  they  confirmed  former  treaties  and 
received  a  present  of  goods  to  the  value  of  .^300.  The  deeds 
were  signed  and  the  money  paid  and  the  merchandise  deliv- 
ered.' 

It  was  not  until  the  year  1768  that  the  Six  Nations,  by  the 
Treaty  at  Fort  Stanwix,  relinquished  all  their  rights  to  the 
country  on  the  east  and  south  side  of  the  Ohio  River,  from 
the  Cherokee  River  (Tennessee),  to  Kittanning,  above  Fort 
Pitt,  and  also  east  of  a  specified  line  described  in  the  deed, 
continued  to  Wood  Creek,  near  Fort  Stanwix,  in  consider- 
ation of  the  sum  of  ;^  10,460.  7.  6.  sterling.  At  the  same  time 
it  was  agreed  that  no  old  claims  under  the  treaties  of  Lan- 
caster and  Logstown  should  be  allowed."  It  was  after  the 
Treaty  of  Lancaster  that  large  tracts  of  land  were  granted 
to  the  Ohio  Company. 

'  "  Treaty  of  Lancaster,"  printed  by  Franklin,  1744. 
^  "  New  York  Colonial  History." 


OHIO  COMPANY. 


EXTRACT  OF   LETTER   FROM  COL.    BURWELL,  PRESI- 
DENT OF  THE   COUNCIL  AND   COMMANDER-IN- 
CHIEF  OF  VIRGINIA,  AND  OTHER  LETTERS 
TO  THE  BOARD  OF  TRADE.' 


August  21,  175 1. — Notwithstanding  the  Grants  of  the 
Kings  of  England,  France  or  Spain,  the  Property  of  these 
uninhabited  Parts  of  the  World  must  be  founded  upon  prior 
Occupancy  according  to  the  Law  of  Nature ;  and  it  is  the 
seating  and  cultivating  the  soil  and  not  the  bare  travelling 
through  a  Territory  that  constitutes  Right ;  and  it  will  be 
politic  and  highly  for  the  Interest  of  the  Crown  to  encourage 
the  seating  the  Lands  Westward  as  soon  as  possible  to  pre- 
vent the  French ;  which  I  hope  will  be  accomplished  as  the 
Freedom  and  Liberty  of  our  Government  will  so  much  sooner 
invite  into  the  British  Colonies,  Foreigners.  We  have  not 
been  able  to  prevail  with  the  northern  Indians  to  come  to 
Fredericksburg  to  accept  of  his  Majesty's  Present,  and  the 
Reason  they  offer  is,  the  immense  Distance  and  the  Death  of 
several  of  their  Great  Men,  which  they  attribute  to  the  Jour- 
neys they  have  taken  to  the  Places  where  Conferences  have 
been  held,  but  they  acquaint  us  at  the  same  Time  that  they 
will  meet  any  persons  the  Government  think  proper  to  send 
to  Log's  Town,  a  Place  not  far  from  our  back  Inhabitants, 
where  they  frequently  hold  their  Councils  ;   this  I  communi- 

'  MSS.  from  Record  Office,  London. 

(220) 


OHIO    COMPANY.  221 

cated  to  his  Majesty's  Council,  who  with  myself  approved  of 
it,  and  this  Fall  I  shall  send  a  Messenger  to  acquaint  them 
that  I  purpose  next  May  to  send  Commissioners  to  meet 
them  at  the  Place  they  desire  ;  and  at  the  Conference  I  shall 
endeavour  to  obtain  a  confirmation  of  the  Grant  of  the  Lands 
made  to  his  Majesty  at  the  Treaty  of  Lancaster,  in  Order  to 
give  the  Company  an  Opportunity  of  surveying  the  large 
Tract  of  Land  his  Majesty  was  pleased  to  grant  to  them.  I 
shall  at  the  same  Time,  make  a  remonstrance  to  them  of  the 
inhuman  treatment  they  have  shewn  to  some  of  our  back  In- 
habitants, by  robbing  and  plundering  their  houses,  and  last 
June  because  a  poor  woman  would  not  with  patience  see  her 
House  robbed  of  every  thing  in  it,  they  in  a  most  horrible 
Manner  murdered  her.  These  outrages  have  been  committed 
upon  our  shewing  too  much  lenity  to  them,  and  will  be  a 
means  of  drawing  upon  ourselves  much  more  ill  Treatment 
if  not  properly  resented,  and  therefore  in  as  mild  Terms  as  is 
consistent  with  the  nature  of  the  thing  I  shall  insist  that  the 
offenders  be  given  up  to  Justice. 


FROM  COL.  LEE.» 


Williamsburg,  June  12,  1750. 
My  Lords: 

I  have  lately  received  a  letter  from  the  Governor  of  New 

York  dated  the  8th  of  April,  proposing  my  prevailing  with 

the  Catawbas,  an  Indian  Nation  bordering  on  the  Carolinas, 

to  meet  the   Six  Nations   at  Albany  to  confirm  the  peace 

Governor    Sir  William  Gooch  made   between  them,  which 

has  been  broke  by  both  Parties,  and  further  the  French  are 

'  MSS.  from  Record  Office,  London.     Letter  from  Col.  Lee,  President 
of  the  Council  and  Commander-in-Chief  of  Virginia. 


222  CHRISTOPHER   GISTS  JOURNALS. 

at  this  time  assiduous  in  their  Endeavours  to  incite  the  several 
Nations  that  are  dependent  on,  and  friends  to  the  English,  to 
a  war  with  one  another,  and  make  large  presents  to  the  Indians 
on  the  Ohio.  I  have  accounts  from  other  hands  that  the 
French  have  endeavoured  to  persuade  those  Indians  to  drive 
the  English  Traders  from  thence,  which  being  refused,  the 
French  threaten  to  treat  them  as  enemys,  so  that  the  Mohocks 
expect  a  war  with  their  Father  Onantio ;  as  they  call  the  Gov- 
ernor of  Quebec'  I  have  received  His  Majesty's  present  for 
the  Indians  of  the  Six  Nations,  and  several  of  their  Tribes  on 
the  Ohio,  and  have  taken  the  best  methods  I  could  think  of,  to 
bring  those  Nations  to  Fredericksburg  in  their  Colony,  and  I 
have  invited  the  Catawbas  to  meet  them,  to  make  a  peace 
personally,  which  has  never  been  done  yet,  and  is  the  reason 
that  it  has  been  of  no  effect.  When  the  Indians  hearts  and 
Eyes  are  Open,  on  receiving  the  King's  present,  I  hope  to 
secure  their  affections  to  the  British  Interest  in  General,  and 
persuade  them  to  be  friends,  and  faithful  subjects  to  His 
Majesty,  and  as  this  is  the  antientiest  and  most  central  Colony, 
it  will  save  an  expence  by  having  future  treatys  here,  espe- 
cially, when  the  business  to  be  transacted  relates  to  the 
affairs  of  this  Colony." 


EXTRACT    FROM    REPORT   OF   MR.   JOSHUA   FRY   TO 
HON.  LEWIS  BURWELL. 


In  the  year  1609  a  new  charter  was  obtained  (for  Virginia) 
in  which  all  the  Lands,  Countries  and  Territories  were  granted 
in  that  part  of  America  called  Virginia,  from  the  Cape  or  Point 
Comfort,  two  hundred  miles  Northward,  and  two  hundred 
miles  southward  along  the  sea-coast ;  and  all  that  space  and 

'  "  Cfleron's  Expedition." 


OHIO   COMPANY.  22$ 

circuit  of  land,  lying  from  the  sea-coast  of  the  Precinct  afore- 
said up  into  the  main  Land  throughout  from  sea  to  sea  west 
and  north  west,  and  also  all  the  Islands  lying  within  one  hun- 
dred miles  along  the  coast  of  both  seas. 

The  French  claimed  the  Lands  along  the  Mississippi. 
Monsieur  de  la  Sale  was  the  first  Frenchman,  that  discovered 
the  Mississippi,  who  in  the  year  1682,  with  Monsieur  de  Tonti 
and  others  from  Montreal  travelled  through  the  Nation  of  the 
Iroquois,  called  now  the  Six  Nations,  to  a  nation  of  Indians 
named  Illinois,  living  on  an  east  Branch  of  Mississippi,  of  the 
same  name  with  the  Nation,  but  he  called  it  Seigne  bay.  On 
this  river  he  built  a  Fort,  which  he  named  Lewis,  according 
to  Tousels  account,  but  Hennepin  calls  it  Crevecoeur. 

Monsieur  de  la  Sale  went  down  this  river  to  the  Mississippi 
and  down  it  to  the  mouth,  which  he  found  to  be  in  the  Bay  of 
Mexico.  He  then  returned  by  Canada  to  France,  and  obtained 
from  the  King  ships  and  men  in  the  year  1684  to  discover 
the  Mouth  of  the  Mississippi  by  sea,  but  he  missed  it,  and 
landed  on  the  Continent  to  the  south  west.  From  thence  he 
made  some  journeys  into  the  country  to  look  for  the  river,  but 
was  murdered  by  some  of  his  own  men  without  finding  it.  In 
the  year  1742  one  John  Howard  received  a  commission  from 
our  Governor  to  make  discoveries  westward,  and  with  four  or 
five  others  set  out  from  the  branches  of  James  river,  and  came 
to  the  New  river.  There  they  made  a  Boat  with  Buffaloes 
Hides,  and  went  down,  till  they  found  the  river  impassable  on 
account  of  Falls.  Leaving  it  they  travelled  south  westerly  a 
considerable  way  to  another  river,  which  proved  to  be  a  south 
branch  of  the  New  river,  for  they  made  another  boat  and  went 
down  to  that  river,  and  with  it  to  the  Allegany'  river. 

Howard  and  his  men  proceeded  down  this  river  a  long  way, 
by  their  reckoning  above  eight  hundred  miles,  to  the  Missis- 
sippi, and  went  down  it  a  great  way  till  they  were  surprised 

'  Ohio. 


224  CHRISTOPHER    GIST'S   JOURNALS. 

by  about  ninety  men,  French,  Indians  and  Negroes;  were 
made  Prisoners  and  carried  to  New  Orleans.  They  set  out 
from  the  branches  of  the  James  river  March  the  i6th,  came  to 
Allegany  May  the  6th,  to  Mississippi  June  the  7th  and  were 
taken  July  the  2d.  In  all  this  time  and  large  tract  of  country 
they  had  seen  nobody  till  they  were  taken,  but  about  fifteen 
Indians  in  several  Companies  and  they  too  were  chiefly  if  not 
all  of  the  Northern  Nations. 

John  Peter  Salley,  one  of  the  men  who  went  with  Howard, 
mentions  in  his  Journal  three  French  Towns  on  an  Island  in 
the  Mississippi  above  the  mouth  of  the  Owabache. 

Howard  and  his  men  had  been  confined  a  long  time  at  New 
Orleans,  when  after  the  French  War  broke  out  he  and  one  or 
two  of  them  were  shipped  for  France,  but  on  the  Voyage 
were  taken  by  an  English  Ship,  and  carried  to  London.  The 
rest  of  them  made  their  escape  out  of  prison,  and  through 
great  difficulties  got  to  South  Carolina,  and  thence  to  Virginia. 

The  first  Peace  the  Colony  of  Virginia  made  with  the  In- 
dians was  at  Albany  by  Col.  Coursey  in  the  year  1677,  which 
after  some  breach  made  by  the  Indians  was  renewed  in  the 
year  1679  by  Col.  Kendal,  and  again  in  1684  by  Lord  Howard, 
Governor  of  Virginia.  This  peace  was  soon  broken  and  re- 
newed by  Col.  William  Byrd  and  Col.  Edmond  Jennings  in 
the  year  1685.  When  we  began  to  take  up  Lands  and  settle 
beyond  the  Blue  Ridge,  the  Six  Nations  grew  uneasy ;  the 
Indians  claimed  the  Land  as  theirs.  This  brought  on  the 
Treaty  of  Lancaster  in  the  year  1744. 


OHIO  COMPANY. 


In  1748  John  Hanbury,  a  Merchant  of  London,  Thomas  Lee, 
President  of  the  Council  of  Virginia,  with  a  number  of  others, 
mostly  prominent  Virginians,  formed  the  "  Ohio  Company." 

'  Copied  from  the  Mercer  Papers,  which  belonged  to  the  Ohio  Company. 


\ 


OHIO    COMPANY.  22$ 

The  King  granted  them  two  hundred  thousand  Acres  of  Land, 
to  be  taken  on  the  South  side  of  the  river  Allegheny,  other- 
wise the  Ohio,  between  the  Kiskiminites  Creek  and  Buffalo 
Creek,  and  between  Yellow  Creek  and  Cross  Creek,  on  the 
North  side ;  or  in  such  other  part  of  the  Country  west  of  the 
Allegheny  Mountains  as  they  should  think  proper,  on  Condi- 
tion that  they  should  settle  one  hundred  families  thereon 
within  seven  years,  and  erect  and  maintain  a  Fort.  On  com- 
pliance therewith,  the  Company  was  to  become  entitled  to 
Three  hundred  thousand  Acres  more,  adjoining  the  first  grant. 
The  Company  bought  and  sent  out  a  large  Cargo  of  goods 
from  England  in  1749-50,  and  built  a  Store  House  opposite 
the  mouth  of  Wills  Creek,  now  Cumberland,  Maryland,  from 
which  place  to  Turkey  Foot,  or  the  Three  forks  of  the  Youg- 
hioghany,  they  had  a  road  opened  in  175 1.  In  1750  they 
employed  Christopher  Gist  to  explore  and  examine  the  Coun- 
try west  of  the  Mountains.  He  was  a  Native  of  Maryland, 
like  his  Father  Richard,  a  Surveyor.  A  man  of  excellent 
character,  energetic,  fearless  and  a  thorough  woodsman. 


OHIO  COMPANY.— SECOND  PETITION. 


Members  of  the  Ohio  Company. 
Arthur  Dobbs  Esqr  Ex''  of  Law"  Washington 

John  Hanbury  Augus"  Washington 

Samuel  Smith  Richard  Lee 

James  Wardrop  Nath""'  Chapman. 

Capel  Hanbury  Jacob  Giles 

Robert  Dinwiddle  Esq'  Thomas  Cresap 

The  Exec,  of  Thomas  Lee  late  John  Mercer 
President  and  Governor  of  Vir-  James  Scott 
ginia  2  shares  Robert  Carter 

John  Taylor  Esq  George  Mason 

Prestly  Thornton  Esq 


226 


CHRISTOPHER    GIST  S    JOURNALS. 


To  THE  Kings  most  Excellent  Majesty  in  Council. 
The  Humble  Petition  of  the  Ohio  Company  Sheweth, 

That  your  Petitioners  upon  Intimation  given  by  several 
Nations  of  Indians  residing  near  the  Ohio  and  other  Branches 
of  Mississippi  and  near  the  Lakes  westward  of  Virginia,  that 
they  were  desirous  of  trading  with  your  Majesty's  Subjects 
and  quitting  the  ffrench  ;  and  knowing  the  vahie  of  those 
Rich  Countrys  which  were  given  up  and  acknowledged  to  be 
your  Majesty's  undoubted  right  by  the  Six  Nations,  who  are 
LawfuU  Lords  of  all  these  Lands  by  Conquest  from  other 
Indian  Nations,  at  the  treaty  of  Lancaster  on  the  2'"'  day  of 
July  1744.  Your  petitioners  being  sensible  of  the  vast  con- 
sequence of  securing  those  Countrys  from  the  ffrench,  did  in 
the  year  1748,  form  themselves  into  a  Company  to  Trade  with 
the  Indians  and  to  make  settlements  upon  the  Ohio  or  Alle- 
ghany River,  by  the  name  of  the  Ohio  Company.  That  the 
Company  in  the  beginning  of  the  year  1749  Petitioned  your 
Majesty,  wherein  they  set  forth  the  vast  Advantage  it  would 
be  to  Britain  and  the  Colonys  to  anticipate  the  French  by 
taking  possession  of  that  Country  Southward  of  the  Lakes,  to 
which  the  French  had  no  Right,  nor  had  then  taken  possession, 
except  a  small  Block  house  Fort  among  the  Six  Nations,  be- 
low the  falls  of  Niagara,  they  having  deserted  Le  Detroit  fort 
Northward  of  Erie  Lakes,  during  the  War  and  retired  to 
Canada. 

The  Reasons  for  securing  the  same  being  mentioned  at 
large  in  their  said  former  Petition,  and  in  which  they  prayed 
that  your  Majesty  would  give  orders  or  Instructions  to  your 
Governor  of  Virginia,  to  make  out  to  your  Petitioners  five 
hundred  thousand  Acres  betwixt  Romanittoe  and  Buffaloe 
Creeks  on  the  South  side  of  the  Allegany  or  Ohio  River,  and 
between  the  two  Creeks  and  Yellow  Creek  on  the  North  side 


OHIO    COMPANY,  22/ 

of  that  River,  upon  the  Terms  and  with  the  Allowance  there- 
in mentioned  to  which  they  beg  leave  to  Refer. 

That  your  Petitioners  in  pursuance  of  the  said  Petition, 
obtained  an  order  from  your  Majesty  to  your  Lieutenant  Gov- 
ernor of  Virginia  dated  March  the  i8th  1749,  to  make  them  a 
grant  or  Grants  of  Two  hundred  thousand  Acres  of  Land  be- 
tween Romanetto  and  Buffaloe  Creeks,  on  the  south  side  of  the 
Ohio,  and  betwixt  the  two  creeks  and  Y.ellow  Creek  on  the 
North  side  thereof,  or  in  such  part  to  the  Westward  of  the 
Great  Mountains  as  the  Company  should  think  proper  for 
making  settlements  and  extending  their  trade  with  the  Indians, 
with  a  Promise  if  they  did  not  erect  a  Fort  in  the  said  Land, 
and  maintain  a  sufficient  Garrison  therein  and  seat  at  their 
proper  Expense  a  hundred  families  therein  in  seven  years,  the 
said  grants  should  be  void.  And  as  soon  as  these  terms  were 
accomplished,  he  was  ordered  to  make  out  a  further  Grant  or 
Grants  of  three  hundred  thousand  Acres,  under  like  Conditions, 
Restrictions  and  allowances  as  the  first  200,000  Acres,  adjoin- 
ing thereto  and  within  these  limits.  These  orders  were  de- 
livered to  the  Honourable'William  Nelson  on  the  12th  of  July 
following  (1749)  and  upon  producing  them  before  the  Gov- 
ernor and  Council,  they  made  an  entry  in  the  Council  Books, 
that  the  said  Company  should  have  leave  given  them  to  take 
up  and  survey  200,000  Acres  within  the  Place  mentioned  in 
your  Majestys  said  Instructions  and  Order.  That  your  Peti- 
tioners upon  their  entry  in  the  Council  Books,  sent  to  Great 
Britain  for  a  Cargo  of  Goods  to  begin  their  Trade,  and  pur- 
chased Lands  upon  the  Potomack  River,  being  the  most 
convenient  place  to  erect  Store  Houses,  and  in  September 
following  (1749)  employed  Gentlemen  to  discover  the  Lands 
beyond  the  Mountains,  to  know  where  to  place  their  surveys. 
But  they  not  having  made  any  considerable  progress,  the 
Company  in  September  1750  agreed  to  give  Mr.  Christopher 


228  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's    JOURNALS. 

Gist  ;^I50  certain,  and  such  further  handsome  allowance  as 
his  service  should  deserve,  for  searching  and  discovering  the 
Lands  upon  the  Ohio  and  its  several  Branches  as  low  as  the 
falls  on  the  Ohio,  with  proper  Instructions.  He  accordingly 
set  out  October  1750  and  did  not  return  until  May  1751,  after 
a  tour  of  1200  Miles  in  which  he  visited  many  towns  and  found 
them  all  desirous  of  entering  into  strict  friendship  and  Trade 
with  your  Majestys  Subjects. 

That  your  Petitioners  at  their  General  Meeting  in  May  1 75 1 , 
judging  it  necessary  for  their  Trade  and  passage  to  the  Ohio, 
to  have  a  Grant  of  some  Land  belonging  to  Maryland  and 
Pennsylvania,  wrote  to  Mr.  Hanbury  to  apply  for  the  same  to 
the  Proprietors,  and  laid  out  and  opened  a  wagon  road  thirty 
feet  wide  from  their  Store  house  at  Wills  Creek,  to  the  three 
branches  on  Ganyangaine  River,  computed  to  be  near  Eighty 
Miles  ;  and  applied  to  the  President  and  Masters  of  William 
and  Mary  College  for  a  Commission  to  a  Surveyor  to  lay  out 
the  Lands,  as  they  pretend  they  had  a  right  to  do,  proposing 
to  begin  the  survey  after  receiving  Mr.  Gists  Report. 

Your  Petitioners  finding  by  the  said  Gists  Journal  that  he 
had  only  observed  the  Lands  on  the  North  side  of  the  Ohio, 
and  finding  that  the  Indians  were  unwilling  that  they  should 
then  settle  on  the  Miami  River,  or  on  the  north  side  of  the  Ohio, 
and  the  Land  lying  too  much  exposed  and  at  too  great  a  dis- 
tance. They  employed  the  said  Gist  to  go  out  a  second  time 
to  view  and  examine  the  land  between  Mohongaly  and  the 
Big  Conhaway,  Wood  or  New  River  on  the  south  East  side  of 
the  Ohio,  which  employed  him  from  the  4th  of  November 
175 1  to  the  March  following  1752  ;  but  he  could  not  finish  his 
Plan  and  report  before  October  1752,  at  which  time  the  Com- 
pany gave  in  a  Petition  to  the  Governor  and  Council,  praying 
leave  to  survey  and  take  up  their  first  200,000  Acres  between 
Romanettoes,  otherwise  Kiskominettos  Creek,  and  the  fork  of 


OHIO   COMPANY.  229 

the  Ohio  and   the   great  Conhaway,  otherwise  New  River, 
otherwise  Woods  river,  on  the  south  side  of  the  river  Ohio  in 
several   Surveys.     The   Governor  and   Council  having  not 
thought  fit  to  comply  with  the  prayer  of  the  said  Petition,  to 
allow  your  Petitioners  to  survey  their  Lands  in  different  Tracts 
as  would  best  accomodate  the  settlers  and  secure  their  fron- 
tiers from  attacks,  the  President  and  Masters  of  the  College 
also  refusing  to  give  out  a  Commission  to  a  Surveyor  ;  and 
the  late  Governor  and  Council  having  made  out  large  Grants 
to   private   persons    Land-gobbers,   to   the  amount   of   near 
1,400,000  Acres.     Immediately,  even  the  same  day,  after  your 
Majestys  Instructions  for  ipaking  out  your  Petitioners  Grant 
and  Surveys,  became  publicly  known  where  the  Lands  were 
not  properly  described  or  Limited,  nor  Surveyed,  by  which 
means  their  several  Grants  might  have  interfered  with  the 
Lands  discovered  and  chosen  by  the  Company,  your  Peti- 
tioners now  laid   under  difficultys  in  surveying  and  letting 
•  their  Lands  and  Erecting  the  fort,  tho'  your  Petitioners  have 
been  at  very  great  Expence  and  are  willing  to  be  at  a  much 
greater,  to  secure  those  valuable  Countrys  and  the  Indian 
Trade.      That  your  Petitioners  apprehend  from  these   Ob- 
structions, and  the  Delay  and  Expence  attending  Surveys,  and 
from  the  suits  that  may  be  commenced  upon  account  of  the 
Grants  made  out  to  other  Persons  since  the  Instructions  given 
by  your  Majesty  to  grant  to  your  Petitioners  the  Land  men- 
tioned in  the  said  Instructions  which  may  occasion   longer 
Delays.    The  Company  may  be  prevented  from  fulfilling  their 
Covenant  of  settling  the  Lands  and  Compleating  their  Fort 
in  the  time  specified  by  the  said  Contract.     And  as  boundaries 
to  large  Grants  are  much  more  natural  and  easy  to  be  ascer- 
tained by -having  Rivers  for  their  Limits,  and  streight  Lines 
or  Mountains  to  connect  them  from  River  to  River,  and  at 
much  less  ExpenCe  and  delay  in  fixing  them.  Therefore  your 


230  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

petitioners  pray,  that  upon  Condition  your  Petitioners  shall 
enlarge  their  settlements  and  seat  300  families,  instead  of  one 
hundred  by  their  former  Contract,  and  in  consideration  of 
their  erecting  two  forts,  one  at  Chartiers  Creek  and  the  other 
at  the  Fork  where  the  great  Conhaway  enters  the  Ohio  and 
maintain  them  at  their  own  expence.  That  your  Majesty  will 
be  graciously  pleased  to  enlarge  their  Grant  under  the  same 
Exemption  of  Rights  and  Quit  Rents  as  in  the  former  In- 
structions, and  to  fix  the  Bounds  without  any  further  delay  or 
Survey,  from  Romanettos  or  Kiskomenetto  Creek  on  the 
South  East  side  of  the  Ohio,  to  the  Fork  at  the  entrance  of 
the  great  Conhaway  River ;  and  from  thence  along  the  North 
side  of  the  said  Conhaway  River  to  the  Entrance  of  Green 
Briar  River,  and  from  thence  in  a  streight  Line  or  Lines  along 
the  Mountains  to  the  South  East  Spring  of  Mohangaly  River ; 
and  from  thence  Northward  along  the  Mountains  to  the 
North  East  springs  of  Romanetto  or  Kiskominetto  Creek,  or 
till  a  West  Line  from  the  Mountains  intersect  this  said  Spring 
and  along  it  to  its  entrance  into  the  Ohio  ;  which  will  prevent 
all  Disputes  or  Delays  about  the  Limitts  which  are  necessary 
to  be  immediately  determined,  as  the  season  is  advancing  to 
procure  foreign  Protestants  and  other  of  your  Majestys  sub- 
jects to  go  on  with  the  settlement,  and  to  provide  materials  to 
erect  the  second  Fort  at  the  mouth  of  the  great  Conhaway 
River,  (the  Fort  on  Chartiers  Creek  being  now  building)  in 
order  to  prevent  the  Intrusions  and  incroachments  of  the  In- 
dians in  the  French  aliance  and  secure  our  settlements  upon 
the  Ohio  ;  which  if  not  immediately  put  in  Execution  before 
they  get  permission  may  be  highly  detrimental  to  the  Colonys 
and  occasion  a  great  future  Expence  to  Britain. 

And  your  Petitioners  will  ever  pray  etc. 

The  Lords  of  the  Committee  referred  the  petition  to  the 
Lords  Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Plantations  to  consider 
thereof  and  Report  their  opinion  thereupon  to  the  Committee. 


OHIO    COMPANY.  23 1 

The  Petition  was  granted  by  King  and  Council.  At  a 
meeting  of  the  Company  held  at  Stafford  Court  House,  some 
of  the  Members  resigned  and  George  Mason  was  received. 
They  advised  Mr.  Hanbury  of  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting, 
and  desired  him  to  offer  the  Duke  of  Bedford  a  share,  if  he 
chose  to  be  concerned,  upon  the  terms  of  the  Association. 
As  Mr.  Hanbury  had  wrote  us  that  we  were  obliged  to  his 
Grace  for  his  Assistance  in  obtaining  his  Majesty's  Instruc- 
tion, and  his  declaration  of  the  advantage  he  conceived  it 
would  be  of  to  Great  Britain  and  this  colony,  for  that  not- 
withstanding we  expected  a  great  deal  of  interested  opposition 
and  should  think  ourselves  happy  in  having  such  a  patron  at 
the  head  of  the  Company.  They  then  agreed  with  H.  Parker 
for  the  carriage  of  all  their  goods  from  the  falls  of  Potomack 
to  their  general  factory  on  the  River  Ohio,  and  authorized 
Col.  Cresap  to  have  a  road  opened  to  those  places.  They  de- 
sired the  Ohio  Indians  might  be  invited  to  a  Treaty,  and  an 
Interpreter  might  be  employed  by  Virginia,  and  Mr.  Parker 
their  factor  be  put  in  the  commission  of  the  Peace  for  Augusta 
County.     George  Mason  was  appointed  Treasurer. 


INSTRUCTIONS  GIVEN  TO  CHRISTOPHER  GIST  BY  THE 
OHIO  COMPANY,  APRIL  28th,   1752. 


Whereas  the  Governor  has  been  pleased  to  grant  you  a 
commission  empowering  and  requiring  you  to  go  as  an  agent 
for  the  Ohio  Company  to  the  Indian  Treaty  to  be  held  at  Logs 
Town  on  the  i6th  day  of  May  next.  You  are  therefore  desired 
to  acquaint  the  chiefs  of  the  several  nations  of  Indians  there 
assembled,  that  his  Majesty  has  been  graciously  pleased  to 
grant  unto  the  Hon.  Robert  Dinwiddie  Esq',  Governor  of  Vir- 
ginia, and  to  several  other  gentlemen  in  Great  Britain  and 


232  CHRISTOPHER   GISX's   JOURNALS. 

America,  by  the  name  of  the  Ohio  Company,  a  large  quantity 
of  Land  on  the  river  Ohio  and  the  Branches  thereof,  thereby 
to  enable  and  to  encourage  the  said  company  and  all  his 
Majesties  subjects,  to  make  settlement  and  carry  on  an  exten- 
sive Trade  and  commerce  with  their  Brethren  the  Indians, 
and  to  supply  them  with  Goods  at  a  more  easy  rate  than  they 
have  hitherto  bought  them.  And  considering  the  necessities 
of  his  children  the  Six  Nations,  and  the  other  Indians  to  the 
Westward  of  the  English  settlements,  and  the  hardship  they 
labor  under  for  want  of  a  due  supply  of  Goods  and  to  remove 
the  same  as  much  as  possible,  his  Majesty  has  been  pleased  to 
have  a  clause  inserted  in  the  said  Companies  Grant  obliging 
them  to  carry  on  a  trade  and  commerce  with  their  Brethren 
the  Indians,  and  has  granted  them  many  privileges  and  immun- 
ities in  consideration  of  their  carrying  on  the  said  trade,  and 
supplying  the  Indians  with  Goods;  that  the  said  Company 
have  accordingly  begun  the  Trade  and  imported  large  quan- 
tities of  goods,  but  have  found  the  expence  and  Risque  of  carry- 
ing out  the  Goods  without  assistance  from  the  Inhabitants,  not 
having  any  place  of  safety  by  the  way  to  lodge  them  at,  or  op- 
portunity of  getting  provisions  for  their  people,  so  great  that 
they  cannot  afford  to  sell  their  Goods  at  so  easy  a  rate  as  they 
would  willingly  do ;  nor  are  they  at  such  a  distance  able  to 
supply  their  Brethren  the  Indians  at  all  times  when  they  are  in 
want.  For  which  reason  the  company  find  it  absolutely  neces- 
sary, immediately  to  cultivate  and  settle  the  Land  his  Majesty 
has  been  pleased  to  grant  them,  which  to  be  sure  they  have  an 
indisputable  right  to  do.  As  our  Brethren  the  Six  Nations  sold 
all  the  Land  to  the  Westward  of  Virginia  at  the  Treaty  of 
Lancaster  to  their  Father  the  King  of  Great  Britain,  and  he 
has  been  graciously  pleased  to  grant  a  large  quantity  thereof 
to  the  said  Ohio  Company,  yet,  being  informed  that  the  Six 
Nations  have  given  their  Friends  the  Delawares  leave  to  hunt 


OHIO    COMPANY.  233 

upon  the  said  Lands,  and  that  they  still  hunt  upon  part  there- 
of themselves,  and  as  the  settlements  made  by  the  English 
upon  the  said  land  may  make  the  Game  scarce,  or  at  least 
drive  it  further  back,  the  said  Company  therefore  to  prevent 
any  difference  or  misunderstanding,  which  might  possibly 
happen  between  them  and  their  Brethren  the  Indians  touch- 
ing the  said  Lands,  are  willing  to  make  them  some  further 
satisfaction  for  the  same  and  to  purchase  of  them  the  Land 
on  the  east  side  of  the  river  Ohio  and  AUagany  as  low  as  the 
great  Canhaway  providing  the  same  can  be  done  at  a  reason- 
able Rate  ;  and  our  Brethren  the  Six  Nations  and  their  Allies 
will  promise  and  engage  their  Friendship  and  protection  to 
all  his  Majesties  subjects  settling  on  the  said  Lands.  When 
this  is  done  the  Company  can  safely  venture  to  build  Factories 
and  Store  Houses  upon  the  river  Ohio,  and  send  out  large 
Cargoes  of  Goods  which  they  cannot  otherwise  do,  and  to 
convince  our  Brethren  the  Indians  how  desirous  we  are  of 
living  in  strict  Friendship  and  becoming  one  people  with  them, 
You  are  hereby  empowered  and  required  to  acquaint  and 
promise  our  Brethren,  in  the  name  and  on  behalf  of  the  said 
Company,  that  if  any  of  them  incline  to  take  land  and  live 
among  the  English,  they  shall  have  any  of  the  said  company's 
Land  upon  the  same  Terms  and  conditions  as  the  white  peo- 
ple have,  and  enjoy  the  same  privilidges  which  they  do  as  far 
as  is  in  the  Company's  power  to  grant. 

And  that  you  may  be  the  better  able  to  acquaint  our  Breth- 
ren the  Indians  with  these  our  proposals  you  are  to  apply  to 
Andrew  Montour  the  interpreter  for  his  assistance  therein, 
and  the  Company  hereby  undertake  and  promise  to  make  him 
satisfaction  for  the  trouble  he  shall  be  at.  If  our  Brethren 
the  Six  Nations  approve  our  proposals  the  Company  will  pay 
them  whatever  sum  you  agree  with  them  for,  and  if  they  want 
any  particular  sort  of  Goods,  you  are  to  desire  them  to  give 
i6 


234  CHRISTOPHER   GISX'S  JOURNALS. 

you  an  account  of  said  Goods  and  the  Company  will  imme- 
diately send  for  them  to  England,  and  when  they  arrive  will 
carry  them  to  what  ever  place  you  agree  to  deliver  them  at. 

If  our  Brethren  the  Indians  do  not  approve  these  proposals 
and  do  refuse  their  protection  and  assistance  to  the  subjects 
of  their  Father  the  King  of  Great  Britain,  you  are  forthwith  to 
make  a  return  thereof  to  the  said  Ohio  Company,  that  they 
may  inform  his  Majesty  thereof. 

You  are  to  apply  to  Col.  Cresap  for  what  Wampum  you 
have  occasion  of  on  the  Companys  account  for  which  you  are 
to  give  him  a  receipt.  You  are  to  apply  to  him  for  one  of  the 
Companies  Horses  to  ride  out  to  the  Loggstown. 

As  soon  as  the  Treaty  is  over,  you  are  to  make  an  exact  re- 
turn of  all  your  proceedings  to  the  Company. 

Given  under  my  hand  in  behalf  of  the  said  Ohio  Company 
the  28*  day  of  April  1752. 

George  Mason  Treasurer 


ADDITIONAL  INSTRUCTIONS  GIVEN  CHRISTOPHER 

GIST.^ 


Upon  your  arrival  at  the  Treaty  if  you  find  that  the  com- 
missioners do  not  make  a  general  Agreement  with  the  In- 
dians on  behalf  of  Virginia  for  the  settlement  of  the  Land 
upon  the  waters  of  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi,  or  that  in  such 
agreement  there  are  any  doubtful  or  ambiguous  expressions 
which  may  be  prejudicial  to  the  Ohio  Company,  you  are  then 
to  endeavour  to  make  purchase  of  the  Lands  to  the  Eastward 
of  the  Ohio  River  and  Allagany,  and  procure  the  Friendship 
and  protection  of  the  Indians  in  settling  the  said  Lands  upon 
the  best  terms  you  can  for  a  quantity  of  Goods. 

'  From  Records  and  Minutes  of  the  Ohio  Company. 


OHIO    COMPANY.  235 

You  are  to  agree  with  them  to  deliver  the  said  goods  at  the 
most  convenient  place  you  can,  if  possible  at  the  Forks  of  the 
Mohongaly,  if  the  Indians  give  you  a  list  of  Goods  which 
they  desire  to  be  sent  for  in  return  for  their  Lands,  you  are 
to  enquire  and  to  find  out  as  near  as  you  can  the  usual  price 
of  such  Goods  among  the  Indians,  that  we  may  be  as  near 
the  sum  you  agree  with  them  for  as  possible. 

You  are  to  engage  Andrew  Montour  the  Interpreter  in  the 
Company's  Interest  and  get  him  to  assist  you  in  making  a 
purchase  of  the  Indians,  and  as  the  Company  have  great 
dependance  and  confidence  in  the  said  Andrew  Montour,  they 
hereby  not  only  promise  to  make  him  satisfaction  for  the 
trouble,  but  if  he  can  make  an  advantageous  bargain  for  them 
with  the  Indians,  they  will  in  return  for  his  good  offices,  let 
him  have  a  handsome  settlement  upon  their  land  without 
paying  any  purchase  money,  upon  the  same  Terms  which  the 
said  Company  themselves  hold  the  Land,  and  without  any 
other  consideration  than  the  King's  Quit  rents. 

If  you  can  obtain  a  Deed  or  other  written  agreement  from 
the  Indians,  it  must  be  taken  in  the  names  of  the  Honb" 
Robert  Dinwiddie  Esq',  Governor  of  Virginia,  John  Han- 
bury  Esqr.  of  the  City  of  London,  Merch',  Capel  Hanbury 
of  the  said  city  of  London  Merch',  John  Tayloe,  Presly 
Thornton,  Philip  Ludwell  Lee,  Thomas  Lee,  Richard  Lee, 
Guwin  Corbin,  John  Mercer,  George  Mason,  Lawrence  Wash- 
ington, Augustus  Washington,  Nathaniel  Chapman  Esquires 
and  James  Scott  Clerk,  all  of  the  Colony  of  Virginia.  James 
Wardrop,  Jacob  Giles  and  Thomas  Cresap  esqrs  of  the  prov- 
ince of  Maryland  and  their  Associates,  members  of  the  Ohio 
Company ;  in  the  said  agreement  or  Deed  You  are  to  mention 
the  Bounds  of  the  Land  as  expressly  as  possible,  that  no  dis- 
pute may  arise  hereafter.  And  we  would  have  the  Indians 
clearly  understand  what  Land  they  sell  us,  that  they  may  have 


236  CHRISTOPHER   GIST'S   JOURNALS. 

no  occasion  to  complain  of  any  Fraud  or  underhand  dealings, 
as  is  often  the  custom  with  them.  The  said  Ohio  Company 
do  hereby  agree  and  oblige  themselves  to  make  you  satisfac- 
tion for  the  Trouble  and  expence  you  shall  be  at  in  Transact- 
ing their  affairs  at  the  said  Treaty,  pursuant  to  the  Instruc- 
tions by  them  given  to  you.  Given  under  my  hand  in  behalf 
of  the  Ohio  Company  this  28th  day  of  April  1752. 

George  Mason,  Treas'. 

If  Col  Cresap  has  not  agreed  with  any  person  to  clear  a 
Road  for  the  Company,  you  are  with  the  advice  and  assist- 
ance of  Col.  Cresap  to  agree  with  the  proper  Indians,  who 
are  best  acquainted  with  the  ways,  immediately  to  cut  a  road 
from  Wills  Creek  to  the  Fork  of  Mohongaly  at  the  cheapest 
Rate  you  can  for  Goods,  and  this  you  may  mention  publicly 
to  the  Indians  at  the  Loggs  Town  or  not  as  you  see  occasion. 

George  Mason,  Treas'. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Committee  of  the  Ohio  Company  at 
Stratford  in  Westmoreland  County,  the  25th  of  July,  1753, 
and  continued  to  the  26th  and  27th  of  the  same  month 

"  Resolved  that  tis  absolutely  necessary  that  the  Company 
should  immediately  erect  a  Fort  for  the  security  and  protec- 
tion of  their  Settlement  on  a  hill  just  below  Shurtees'  Creek 
upon  the  south  east  side  of  the  river  Ohio  ;  that  the  walls  of 
the  said  Fort  shall  be  twelve  feet  high,  to  be  built  of  sawed  or 
hewen  logs,  and  to  enclose  a  piece  of  ground  ninety  feet  square, 
besides  the  four  Bastions  at  the  corners  of  sixteen  feet  square 
each,  with  houses  in  the  middle  for  stores.  Magazines  &c. 
according  to  a  plan  entered  in  the  Company's  Books.  That 
Col.  Cresap,  Capt.  Trent,  and  M'  Gist,  be  appointed  and 
authorized  on  behalf  of  the  Company  to  agree  with  labourers, 
Carpenters  and  other  workmen,  to  build  and  complete  the 

'  Chartiers. 


OHIO   COMPANY.  237 

same  as  soon  as  possible  and  employ  hunters  to  supply  them 
with  Provisions,  and  agree  with  some  honest  industrious  man 
to  overlook  the  workmen  and  labourers  as  Overseer,  and  that 
they  be  supplied  with  flour,  salt  and  all  other  necessaries  at 
the  Companys  expence.  That  all  the  Land  upon  the  hill 
on  which  the  said  Fort  is  to  be  built  be  appropriated  to 
the  use  of  the  said  Fort,  and  that  two  hundred  acres  of 
land  exclusive  of  streets  be  layed  off  for  a  town  convenient 
and  adjoining  to  the  said  Fort  lands,  in  squares  of  two 
acres  each,  every  square  to  be  divided  into  four  lots  so 
that  every  Lot  may  front  two  streets,  if  the  ground  will  so 
admit,  and  that  all  the  streets  be  of  convenient  width,  that 
twenty  of  the  best  and  most  convenient  squares  be  reserved 
and  set  apart  for  the  Company's  own  use,  and  one  square  to 
build  a  School  on  for  the  education  of  Indian  children  and  such 
other  uses  as  the  Company  shall  think  proper  and  that  all  the 
rest  of  the  lots  be  disposed  of." 

Mr.  George  Mason  having  informed  the  Committee  that  he 
has  written  to  M'  Hanbury  for  twenty  swivel  guns  and  other 
arms  and  ammunition  for  the  use  of  the  Fort 

"  Resolved  that  the  committee  do  approve  of  the  same  and 
that  the  said  arms  and  ammunition  as  soon  as  they  arrive  be 
delivered  to  Captain  Trent  the  Company's  Factor  in  order  to 
be  sent  out  to  Shurtees  Creek." 

At  a  Meeting  of  the  Committee  of  the  Ohio  Company, 
November  2d,  1753, 

"Agreed  and  Ordered  that  each  member  of  the  Company 
pay  to  M'  George  Mason  their  Treasurer,  the  sum  of  twenty 
pounds  current  money  for  building  and  finishing  the  Fort  at 
Shurtees  Creek,  Grubing  and  clearing  the  road  from  the 
Company's  store  at  Wills  Creek  to  the  Mohongaly,  which  are 
to  be  finished  with  the  utmost  dispatch  and  for  such  other 
purposes  as  shall  be  directed  by  the  Company." 


238  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

The  proposed  fort  was  not  built.  There  was  some  doubt 
as  to  whom  the  Forks  of  the  Ohio  belonged — by  consent  of 
the  Penns,  Governor  Dinwiddie  sent  Captain  Trent's  Company 
to  build  a  Fort  there.  The  Fort  was  commenced  under  the 
direction  of  Ensign  Ward.  On  the  17th  of  April,  1754,  Cap- 
tain Contrecoeur  descended  the  Allegheny  with  a  considerable 
force  of  French  and  Indians  and  summoned  Ward  to  surrender 
his  unfinished  work.  Resistance  was  out  of  the  question,  he 
surrendered.  Contrecoeur  finished  the  Fort  and  called  it  Du- 
quesne. 

July  9,  1755. — Gen.  Braddock  was  defeated  by  the  French 
and  Indians  under  the  command  of  Captain  Beaujeu.  Beau- 
jeu  was  killed  and  Captain  Dumas  was  the  Commander 
from  the  time  of  Beaujeu's  death  to  the  latter  part  of  the 
following  year,  1756  or  early  in  1757,  when  he  was  transferred 
to  Canada,  and  served  in  the  operations  against  Fort  William 
Henry.  Montcalm  mentioned  him  in  his  dispatches  as  "an 
officer  of  great  distinction."  His  merits  were  fully  recog- 
nized by  the  French  Governor. 

He  was  Major  of  Brigade  at  the  Siege  of  Quebec,  and  after 
his  return  to  France  in  1761  was  appointed  Governor  of  the 
Mauritius  and  Isle  of  Bourbon.' 

General  Grant  was  defeated  by  the  French  and  Indians 
before  Fort  Duquesne,  October,  1758.  November,  1758,  Gen- 
eral Forbes'  army  advanced  and  found  the  Fort  in  flames. 
The  French  escaped  by  the  river. 

Fort  Duquesne  having  been  destroyed  it  was  determined 
to  erect  a  small  work,  to  be  occupied  by  two  hundred  men. 

A  small  square  stockade,  with  a  bastion  at  each  angle,  was 
erected  on  the  bank  of  the  Monongahela  between  Liberty  and 
West  Streets.     Col.  Mercer  was  left  in  command. 

Fort  Pitt  was  built  in  1759-60.  Its  eastern  boundary  ex- 
^  Garneau,  Histoire  du  Canada. 


OHIO   COMPANY.  239 

tended  nearly  to  the  present  Third  (formerly  Marbury)  and 
West  Streets.  The  Fort  had  two  powder  magazines  under 
ground,  built  with  heavy  timber  and  covered  with  tarred 
cloth  and  earth.  One  of  them  was  brought  to  light  near  the 
corner  of  Liberty  and  Marbury  or  Third  Street  in  1855,  when 
excavations  were  made  for  the  Depot  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Railroad  Company. 

In  1763  Fort  Pitt  was  invested  by  the  Indians  while  Cap- 
tain Ecuyer  was  in  command.  January  5,  1769,  a  warrant 
was  issued  for  a  survey  of  the  Manor  of  Pittsburgh,  which  was 
made  on  the  27th  of  March.  Fort  Pitt  was  kept  up  until  1772, 
after  which  a  Corporal  and  a  few  men  only  were  continued 
at  the  Fort.' 

October,  Major  Charles  Edmonstone,  Commander  of  the 
Fort,  sold  to  Alexander  Ross  and  William  Thompson,  all  the 
pickets,  brick,  stones,  timber  and  iron  in  the  buildings,  walls 
and  redoubts  of  the  Fort.  After  several  houses  had  been 
built  of  the  material  the  sale  was  set  aside.  1773,  Richard 
Penn  advised  a  small  garrison  to  be  kept  at  Fort  Pitt  as  a 
protection  from  the  Indians.  Its  demolition  had  been  ordered 
by  General  Gage.  The  boundary  between  Virginia  and 
Pennsylvania  not  having  been  settled,  in  1774  John  Conolly, 
by  orders  of  Lord  Dunmore,  took  possession  of  the  ruins. 

1 78 1,  General  Irvine,  in  a  letter  to  Washington,  speaks  of 
Fort  Pitt  as  a  heap  of  ruins  and  that  at  best  it  was  a  bad 
situation  for  defence.  He  recommends  the  mouth  of  Char- 
tiers  Creek  (Shurtees)  for  a  Post.  The  redoubt  built  by 
Bouquet  still  remains.' 

1781,  Col.  John  Conolly,  who  formerly  lived  upon  the  Ohio, 
and  was  arrested  in  1775,  after  his  exchange  proceeded  to 
Quebec,  and  proposed  "  with  all  the  refugees  he  can  collect  at 

■  See  Fort  Pitt. 

^  Letter  of  General  Irvine. 


240  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

New  York,  he  is  to  join  Sir  John  Johnson  in  Canada,  and 
they  are  to  proceed  with  their  united  forces  to  attack  Fort 
Pitt." 

Note. — The  Redoubt  built  by  Bouquet  is  now  owned  by 
the  Pittsburgh  Chapter  of  the  "Daughters  of  the  American 
Revolution"  ;  it  having  been  recently  given  to  them  by  Mrs. 
Schenley,  the  granddaughter  of  General  James  O'Hara,  from 
whom  she  inherited  it.  A  large  portion  of  the  ground  for- 
merly occupied  by  Fort  Pitt  was  bequeathed  by  General 
O'Hara  to  his  daughter  Mary  Carson  O'Hara,  who  married, 
after  her  father's  death,  William  Croghan,  Esq.,  son  of  Major 
William  Croghan  of  Kentucky.  Major  Croghan  was  a 
cousin  of  George  Croghan,  who  took  so  prominent  a  part  in 
Indian  affairs. 


WALPOLE  GRANT. 


Samuel  Wharton  was  a  member  of  the  mercantile  firm 
of  Baynton,  Wharton  and  Morgan,  extensively  engaged  in  the 
Indian  Trade,  having  storehouses  at  Fort  Pitt  and  other  places 
in  the  Indian  Country  westward.  In  1763  the  sudden  out- 
break of  the  western  Savages,  known  as  the  Pontiac  war, 
occurred ;  the  Traders  were  plundered  of  their  merchandise 
and  other  property ;  twenty-four  of  them  lost  goods  valued 
at  ;^85,9i6.  10.  6.  New  York  Currency.  Baynton,  Wharton 
and  Morgan  were  the  heaviest  sufferers. 

To  compensate  the  Traders  for  their  loss,  the  Six  Nations, 
at  the  Treaty  held  at  Fort  Stanwix  (now  Rome,  New  York), 
on  May  3,  1768,  conveyed  to  them  by  deed  an  immense  tract 
of  land  bordering  on  the  Ohio  River  above  the  Little  Kanhawha, 
comprising  about  one-fourth  of  the  present  State  of  West 
Virginia.  To  their  Grant  the  Traders  gave  the  name  of 
Indiana. 

In  1769  a  company  was  formed  in  London,  consisting  of 
Thomas  Walpole,  an  eminent  banker  (brother  of  Horatio, 
Lord  Walpole),  Samuel  Wharton,  Benjamin  Franklin,  John 
Sargent,  Governor  Thomas  Pownall,— and  other  gentlemen 
both  in  England  and  America, — for  the  purpose  of  buying  from 
the  Crown  a  portion  of  the  vast  country  on  the  Ohio  ceded  to 
the  King  by  the  Six  Nations  the  preceding  year  at  the  Treaty 
of  Fort  Stanwix,  and  also  to  form  a  New  Province  or  Govern- 
ment west  of  Virginia.  The  five  persons  above  named  were 
appointed  a  committee  to  manage  the  business.  Mr.  Whar- 
ton went  to  London  to  attend  to  it.    Lord  Hillsborough,  Presi- 

(241) 


242  CHRISTOPHER   GIST  S   JOURNALS. 

dent  of  the  Board  of  Trade,  reported  against  the  application 
for  the  grant.  Dr.  Frankhn  replied  in  an  elaborate  and  able 
pamphlet,  which  was  read  at  a  subsequent  meeting  of  the 
Council,  July  x,  1772 ;  at  the  same  time,  as  we  learn  from  a 
letter  to  Sir  William  Johnson,  written  by  an  intelligent 
American'  who  was  present,  "  Mr.  Walpole  made  some 
pertinent  observations  on  the  subject  in  general.  Mr.  Whar- 
ton spoke  next  for  several  hours  and  replied  distinctly  to 
each  particular  objection,  and  through  the  whole  of  the  pro- 
ceedings he  so  fully  removed  all  Lord  Hillsborough's  objec- 
tions and  introduced  his  proofs  with  so  much  regularity  and 
made  his  observations  on  them  with  so  much  propriety, 
deliberation  and  presence  of  mind,  that  fully  convinced  every 
Lord  present,  and  gave  satisfaction  to  the  gentlemen  con- 
cerned ;  and  I  must  say  it  gave  me  a  particular  pleasure  to 
hear  an  American  and  a  countryman  act  his  part  so  well  be- 
fore such  a  number  of  great  Lords  and  such  an  august  Board ; 
and  now  I  have  the  great  pleasure  to  inform  you  that  their 
Lordships  have  overruled  Lord  Hillsborough's  Report  and 
have  reported  to  His  Majesty  in  favor  of  Mr.  Wharton  and  his 
Associates. — This  is  looked  upon  here  as  a  most  extraordi- 
nary matter,  and  what  no  American  ever  accomplished  before. 
Indeed  no  one  from  America  had  so  much  interest  and  was 
so  attended  to  by  the  great  Lords  as  Mr.  Wharton." 

On  the  same  day  the  Lords  of  the  Committee  of  Council 
reported  in  favor  of  making  the  grant  to  the  Honorable 
Thomas  Walpole,  Samuel  Wharton  and  their  associates. 

The  King  in  Council  approved  the  Grant  August  14,  1772. 
Lord  Hillsborough  resigned  and  Lord  Dartmouth  succeeded 
him. 

The  Tract  granted,  comprised  within  its  boundaries  all  that 
part  of  the  present  State  of  Kentucky,  east  of  a  line  drawn 

'  Letter  of  Rev.  Wm.  Hanna  to  Sir  Wm.  Johnson. 


WALPOLE  GRANT.  243 

south  from  a  point  on  the  Ohio  River  opposite  the  mouth  of 
the  Scioto,  and  the  western  half  of  the  present  State  of  West 
Virginia.  The  price  to  be  paid  into  the  Royal  Treasury  was 
;£^io,46o.  7.  6,  and  two  shillings  quit  rent  for  every  hundred 
acres  sold  or  leased  by  the  Grantees,  payable  yearly  forever; 
to  commence  twenty  years  after  the  date  of  each  sale  or  lease. 
The  tract  was  usually  known  by  the  name  of  the  Walpole 
Grant.  It  embraced  within  its  limits  the  Traders'  Grant,  or 
Indiana,  which  was  reserved  to  them.  It  also  included  the 
tract  of  five  hundred  thousand  acres  granted  to  the  Ohio 
Company  of  Virginia,  in  1749.  The  members  of  the  Ohio 
Company  were  admitted  into  the  new  association,  which  was 
named  the  Grand  Ohio  Company.  In  compliance  with  the 
King's  orders,  the  Council,  on  the  6th  of  May,  1773,  reported 
to  His  Majesty  a  constitution  or  form  of  Government  for  the 
New  Colony,  which  they  named  Vandalia.  It  contained  within 
its  limits  all  of  the  Walpole  Grant,  with  the  addition  of  all 
the  country  westward  to  the  Kentucky  River.  On  the  28th 
of  October  following,  the  Lords  of  Council  for  Plantation 
Affairs,  ordered  "  that  His  Majesty's  Attorney  General  do  pre- 
pare and  lay  before  this  Committee,  the  draught  of  a  proper 
instrument  to  be  passed  under  the  Great  Seal  of  Great  Britain 
containing  a  Grant  to  the  Honorable  Thomas  Walpole,  Sam- 
uel Wharton,  Benjamin  Franklin  and  John  Sargent  Esqrs.  and 
their  heirs  and  assigns  all  the  Lands  prayed  for  by  their 
Memorial."  It  was  not,  however,  until  the  spring  of  the  year 
1775  that  the  draught  of  the  Grant  was  finally  prepared  and 
ready  for  execution.  The  breaking  out  of  the  war  of  the 
Revolution  occasioned  a  suspension  of  the  business.  Mr. 
Wharton  returned  home  by  way  of  France,  after  an  absence 
of  eight  years.  An  extract  of  a  letter  from  a  gentleman  in 
London,  dated  March  3,  1773,  to  his  friend  in  Virginia  ap- 
peared in  the  Pennsylvatiia  Gazette  of  that  year,  stating  that 


244  CHRISTOPHER    GIST's   JOURNALS. 

"  I  can  inform  you  for  certain  that  the  new  Province  on  the 
Ohio  is  confirmed  to  the  Proprietors  by  the  name  of  Pittsyl- 
vania, in  honor  of  the  Earl  of  Chatham.  Mr.  Wharton  of 
Philadelphia  will  be  appointed  Governor  in  a  few  days;  all 
other  appointments  to  be  made  by  the  King.  The  seat  of 
government  is  to  be  placed  at  the  Forks  of  the  Kenawha  and 
Ohio  rivers."  t 


COPY  OF  THE  AGREEMENT  OF  MAY  7th,   1770, 

signed  by  Messrs.  Walpole,  Pownall,  Franklin  and  Wharton, 
consolidating  the  two  Companies  by  giving  the  Ohio  Com- 
pany ^  and  Col.  Mercer  -7!^. 

We  the  Committee  of  the  Purchasers  of  a  Tract  of  Country 
for  a  new  Province  on  the  Ohio  in  America,  do  hereby  admit 
the  Ohio  Company  as  a  Company  Purchaser  with  us,  for  two 
Shares  of  the  said  Purchase  in  Consideration  of  the  engage- 
ment of  their  Agent  Col.  Mercer,  to  withdraw  the  application 
of  the  said  Company  for  a  separate  Grant  within  the  Limits 
of  the  said  Purchase.     Witness  our  Hands  this   7"'  day   of 

May  1770. 

Thomas  Walpole 

T.  Pownall 

B.  Franklin 

Saml.  Wharton 

The  whole  being  divided  into  Seventy-two  equal  Shares  ; 
by  the  words  "two  shares"  above  is  understood  two  Seventy 
second  parts  of  the  Tract  so  as  above  purchased. 

Thomas  Walpole 
T.  Pownall 
B.  Franklin 
Saml.  Wharton 


LAND  COMPANY  OF  WM.  TRENT  &  CO. 


November  3''  1768  at  Fort  Stanwix  the  Sachems  and 
Chiefs  of  the  Six  nations  in  full  Council  convened  by  his 
Majesty's  order,  and  held  under  the  Presidency  of  his  Super- 
intendant  of  Indian  Affairs  Sir  William  Johnson,  in  consider- 
ation of  the  great  losses  and  Damages,  amounting  to  Eighty 
five  Thousand  nine  hundred  and  sixteen  pounds  ten  shillings 
and  eight  pence  lawful  money  of  New  York  sustained  by 
sundry  Traders  in  the  spring  of  the  year  1763,  when  the 
Shawnese,  Delawares  and  Huron  Tribes  of  Indians,  Tribu- 
taries of  the  six  Nations  did  seize  upon  and  unjustly  appro- 
priate to  themselves  the  Goods  Merchandize  and  effects  of 
the  Traders  "  The  said  Sachems  and  Chiefs  did  give  grant 
Bargain  and  sell  unto  us  our  Heirs  and  assigns  forever,  all 
that  Tract  or  parcel  of  Land 

Beginning  at  the  southerly  side  of  the  South  of  little 
Kenhawa  River,  where  it  empties  itself  into  the  River  Ohio, 
and  running  from  thence  North  East  to  the  Laurel  Hill — 
thence  along  the  Laurel  Hill  until  it  strikes  the  river  Monon- 
gehela — thence  down  the  stream  of  the  said  river  Monon- 
gehela,  acording  to  the  several  courses  thereof  to  the  southern 
Boundary  line  of  the  Province  of  Pennsylvania. — Thence 
westerly  along  the  course  of  the  said  Province  Boundary  Line 
as  far  as  the  same  shall  extend  and  from  thence  by  the  same 
course  to  the  River  Ohio  according  to  the  several  courses 
thereof  to  the  place  of  Beginning.  And  whereas  we  under- 
stand there  are  numbers  of  Families  settled  on  the  said  Lands, 
We  do   hereby  give   Notice   that   they   may  be   assured   of 

(245) 


246  CHRISTOPHER   GIST's   JOURNALS. 

peacable  Possession  on  complying  with  the  Terms  of  our 
general  Land  Office  which  will  be  shortly  opened  for  the  sale 
of  the  said  Lands  in  behalf  of  all  the  grantees,  and  that  the 
purchase  will  be  made  easy." 

Proceedings  of  the  Grantees  of  Lands  from  the  Six 
Nations  Indians  by  Deed  Poll  dated  Nov.  3"*  1768  to  the 
suffering  Traders  Anno  1763. 

Pittsburgh  September  2"'  1775 
Present 

Robert  Callender  Thomas  Smallman 

William  Trent  Joseph  Spear 

John  Gibson  George  Croghan 

Joseph  Simon  John  Ormsby 

George  Morgan 

At  a  meeting  of  several  of  the  Grantees  of  Lands  from  the 
Six  Nations  Indians  by  Deed  Poll  dated  November  3**  1768  to 
the  suffering  Traders  Anno  1763 

Pittsburg  Sep  21='  1775 
Present 

Robert  Callender  George  Croghan 

William  Trent  John  Ormsby 

John  Gibson  Thomas  Smallman 

Joseph  Simon  Joseph  Spear 

George  Morgan 
M'-  William  Trent  informs  the  Company  present  that  on 
his  arrival  in  England  Anno  1769  being  advised  by  Doctor 
Franklin  Lord  Cambdin  and  others,  that  it  was  unnecessary 
to  make  application  to  the  Crown  or  King  in  Council  for  a 
Confirmation  of  the  above  mentioned  Grant  but  that  all  he 
had  to  do  was  to  return  and  take  possession  thereof,  and 
understanding  that  Lord  Hillsborough  was  determined  to 
oppose  a  Confirmation  of  the  said  Grant  as  will  appear  by  his 


LAND  COMPANY  OF  WM.  TRENT  &   CO.        247 

Letters  to  Sir  William  Johnson,  he  declined  making  the  said 
application  for  the, same  to  be  confirmed.  This  M'- Trent 
recommends  not  to  be  made  Public,  as  it  may  perhaps  give 
an  unfavorable  Idea  of  our  Right  to  the  common  People; 
but  he  thought  it  his  duty  to  communicate  it  to  this  Company. 
He  further  acquaints  them  that  soon  after  his  arrival  in 
England  a  Company  of  Gentlemen  made  a  purchase  from 
the  Crown  of  a  Tract  of  Land  on  the  Ohio,  which  includes 
the  Grant  of  all  the  Tract  given  or  Granted  by  the  Six 
Nation  Indians  to  the  suffering  Traders  as  aforesaid.  That 
the  said  company  of  Purchasers  Stiling  themselves  the 
Grand  Ohio  Company  agreed  in  the  Minutes  of  their  pro- 
ceedings to  confirm  and  convey  to  the  said  suffering  Traders 
all  their  Right  and  Title  to  that  part  of  their  purchase  which 
includes  the  Grant  from  the  Indians  to  the  suffering  Traders 
as  aforesaid.  And  that  he  will  furnish  this  Company  with 
a  copy  of  the  said  Minutes.  The  Meeting  then  adjourned  till 
tomorrow  morning  at  6  o'clock. 

At  the  following  meetings  rules  and  regulations  for  the 
organized  Company  were  adopted  and  the  following  letter 
addressed  to  Mr.  Walpole  : 

Pittsburg  Sep  22''  1775 

Sir 

A  number  of  the  sufferers  by  the  Indian  War  in  1763,  hav- 
ing met  at  this  place  to  consult  on  the  most  proper  method 
to  dispose  of  their  Lands  granted  to  them  by  the  Indians  at 
Fort  Stanwix  in  November  1768,  and  understanding  from  Mr. 
William  Trent  that  you  have  the  Original  Deed  from  the 
Indians  for  the  said  Lands  ;  we  request  the  favor  of  you  to 
transmit  the  same  to  us  or  to  your  brother  Thomas,  in  order 
that  it  may  be  recorded  at  Williamsburgh  in  Virginia  as  the 
jurisdiction  of  that  colony  is  now  extended  and  exercised  as 


248  CHRISTOPHER   GISt'S   JOURNALS. 

far  west  as  the  Ohio  and  Courts  established  &c.  We  think 
it  our  duty  to  Inform  you  as  one  of  the  Grantees,  that  many 
Difficulties  are  like  to  arise  from  any  delay  in  taking  Posses- 
sion of  the  Lands,  and  that  those  Difficulties  will  double  on 
us  if  we  do  not  very  speedily  fall  on  some  measures  to  obtain 
Peacable  Possession  of  them  and  Permission  to  proceed  in 
their  sales.  Lands  have  been  and  are  now  surveying  to 
Officers  soldiers  and  others  in  Consequence  of  the  Kings 
Proclamation  of  October  1763,  in  every  part  of  this  Country 
from  hence  downward  as  low  as  Scioto  and  indeed  as  far  as 
Kentucke  and  the  Falls.  And  you  may  be  assured  they  have 
not  hesitated  to  lay  their  Warrants  in  many  parts  of  our 
Grant  of  which  most  of  the  Good  Lands  are  already  surveyed. 
We  are  sir 

Your  most  Obedient  Servants 
Names  of  Traders,  Trent,  Croghan  &c. 

Virginia  declared  by  express  legislative  enactment  in 
1779,  that  all  sales  and  deeds  by  Indians  for  lands  within 
their  limits  to  be  void  and  of  no  effect. 

Congress,  by  acts  of  the  l6th  and  i8th  of  September,  1776, 
and  others  subsequent  thereto,  conferred  grants  of  land  to 
the  officers  and  soldiers  of  the  Continental  army.  Virginia, 
holding  immense  tracts  of  unappropriated  land,  very  soon 
adopted  the  idea  suggested  by  Congress  of  granting  land 
bounties  to  her  officers  and  soldiers  both  in  the  State  and 
Continental  establishments.  To  a  Major-General  15,000  acres 
of  land,  and  to  a  Brigadier-General  10,000. 

For  this  purpose  the  lands  surveyed  by  Christopher  Gist 
were  again  surveyed,  and  the  land  not  in  the  possession  of 
settlers  was  so  disposed  of. 


CAPTAIN   TRENT.  249 

CAPTAIN  TRENT. 


He  was  born  in  1715  in  Chester  County.  1746,  Governor 
Thomas  of  Pennsylvania  appointed  him  captain  of  one  of 
four  companies  raised  in  Pennsylvania,  for  an  intended  expe- 
dition against  Canada.  December,  1747,  the  time  of  his  com- 
pany having  expired,  he  was  honorably  discharged.  1749,  he 
was  appointed,  by  Governor  Hamilton,  a  justice  of  the  Court 
of  Common  Pleas  and  General  Sessions  of  the  Peace  for  Cum- 
berland County.  1750,  he  formed  a  partnership  with  George 
Croghan  to  engage  in  the  Indian  trade.  1752,  he  was 
commissioner  to  Logstown.  1753,  he  was  directed  by  Gov- 
ernor Dinwiddle  to  build  a  fort  at  the  Forks  of  the  Ohio. 
February  17,  1754,  he  began  the  erection  of  the  fort.  April 
16,  the  fort  was  surrendered  to  the  French  under  the  com- 
mand of  M.  de  Contrecoeur.  1755,  Captain  Trent  entered 
the  service  of  Pennsylvania  and  was  a  member  of  the  Proprie- 
tary and  Governor's  Council.  1757,  he  again  entered  the 
employ  of  Virginia.  1758,  he  accompanied  Forbes'  expedition 
against  Fort  DuQuesne,  and  by  his  knowledge  of  the  country 
rendered  important  service.  1763,  his  large  trading-house 
near  Fort  Pitt  was  destroyed  by  the  Indians  ;  he  took  refuge 
in  Fort  Pitt  and  was  employed  in  military  duties  by  the  Com- 
mandant, Captain  S.  Ecuyer.  At  the  Treaty  at  Fort  Stanwix 
the  Indians  were  induced  to  make  a  deed  of  land  to  Trent. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  Revolutionary  War  Congress  gave 
him  a  Major's  commission.  His  Journal  of  an  expedition  from 
Logstown  to  Pickawillany,  a  village  on  the  west  side  of  the 
Great  Miami  River,  at  the  mouth  of  Loramies  Creek,  belong- 
ing to  the  Miami  or  Twightwee  Tribe,  has  been  published  by 
the  Western  Reserve  Historical  Society.* 

'  Colonial  Records. 
«7 


APPENDIX. 


JOHN  PETER  SALLEY. 


A  BRIEF  Account  of  the  Travels  of  Mr.  John  Peter 
Salley,  a  German  living  in  the  County  of  Augusta, 
IN  the  Colony  of  Virginia,  to  the  Westward  of  that 
Colony  as  far  as  the  river  Mississippi,  between  March, 
1741,  and  May,  1745.' 


It  may  be  necessary,  before  I  enter  upon  the  particular  pas- 
sages of  my  travels,  to  inform  my  readers  that  what  they  are 
to  meet  with  in  the  following  narrative  is  only  what  I  retained 
in  my  memory.  For  when  we  were  taken  by  the  French  we 
were  robbed  of  all  our  papers,  that  contained,  writings  rela- 
tive to  our  Travels. 

In  the  year  1740  I  came  from  Pennsylvania  to  that  part  of 
Orange  County  now  called  Augusta,  and  settled  in  a  fork  of 
James  river  close  under  the  Blue  Ridge  of  Mountains  on  the 
West  Side  where  I  now  live. 

In  the  month  of  March  174}^  one  John  Howard  came  to 
my  house  and  told  me  that  he  received  a  commission  from  our 
Governor  to  travel  to  the  westward  of  this  Colony  as  far  as 
the  river  Mississippi  in  order  to  make  Discovery  of  the  Coun- 
try and  that  as  a  reward  for  his  labour,  he  had  the  promise  of 
an  Order  of  Council  for  ten  hundred  thousand  Acres  of  Land 
and  at  the  same  time  obliged  himself  to  give  equal  shares  of 
said  land  to  such  men  as  would  go  in  Company  with  him  to 
search  the  Country  as  above.  Whereupon  I  and  two  men 
and  Charles  Sinclair  (his  own  son  Josiah  Howard  having 
already  joined  with  him)  entered  in  covenant  with  him  bind- 

'  Referred  to  in  Col.  Burwell's  letter  dated  August  21,  1751. 

(253) 


254  APPENDIX. 

ing  ourselves  to  each  other  in  a  certain  writing  and  accord- 
ingly prepared  for  our  journey  in  a  very  unlucky  hour  to  me 
and  my  poor  family. 

On  the  sixteenth  of  March  1742 ;  we  set  off  from  my  House 
and  went  to  Cedar  Creek  about  five  miles,  where  is  a  Natural 
Bridge  over  said  Creek  reaching  from  the  hill  on  the  one  side 
to  the  hill  on  the  other.  It  is  a  solid  Rock  and  is  two  hun- 
dred and  three  feet  high,  having  a  very  large  spacious  arch, 
where  the  water  runs  thro'.  We  then  proceeded  as  far  as 
Mondongachate  now  called  Woods  river,'  which  is  eighty  five 
miles,  where  we  killed  five  Buffaloes,  and  with  their  hides 
covered  the  frame  of  a  boat,  which  was  so  large  as  to  carry 
all  our  Company,  and  all  our  provisions  and  utensils  with 
which  we  passed  down  the  said  river,  two  hundred  and  fifty 
two  miles  as  we  supposed,  and  found  it  very  rockey,  having  a 
great  many  Falls  therein,  one  of  which  we  computed  to  be 
thirty  feet  perpendicular  and  all  along  surrounded  with  inac- 
cessible mountains,  high  precipices  which  obliged  us  to  leave 
said  river.  We  went  then  a  south  west  course  by  Land  eighty 
five  miles,  where  we  came  to  a  small  river  and  there  we  made 
a  little  Boat  which  carried  only  two  men  and  our  provisions. 
The  rest  travelled  by  land  for  two  days  and  then  we  came  to 
a  large  river,  where  we  enlarged  our  Barge  so  as  she  carried 
all  our  Company,  and  whatever  loading  we  had  to  put  into 
her.  We  supposed  that  we  went  down  this  river  two  hun- 
dred and  twenty  miles,  and  had  a  tolerable  good  passage ; 
there  being  only  two  places  that  were  difficult  by  reason  of 
Falls.  Where  we  came  to  this  river  the  country  is  mountain- 
ous, but  the  farther  down  the  plainer,  in  those  mountains  we 
found  great  plenty  of  coals,  for  which  we  named  it  Coal  river, 
where  this  river  and  Woods  river  meets  the  north  mountains 
end,  and  the  country  appears  very  plain  and  is  well  watered, 

'  Now  Kanawha. 


TRAVELS  OF  JOHN  PETER  SALLEY.  255 

there  are  plenty  of  rivulets,  clear  Fountains  and  running 
streams  and  very  fertile  soil ;  from  the  mouth  of  Coal  river  to 
the  river  Allegany'  we  computed  to  be  ninety  two  miles,  and 
on  the  sixth  day  of  May  we  came  to  Allegany  which  we  sup- 
posed to  be  three  quarters  of  a  mile  wide,  and  from  here  to 
the  great  Falls  on  this  river  is  reckoned  four  hundred  and 
forty  four  miles,  there  being  a  large  spacious  open  country  on 
each  side  of  this  river,  and  is  well  watered,  abounding  with 
plenty  of  Fountains,  small  streams  and  large  rivers ;  and  is 
very  high,  and  fertile  soil.  At  this  time  we  found  the  clover 
to  be  as  high  as  the  middle  of  a  man's  leg.  In  general  all 
the  woods  over  the  Land  is  of  great  plenty  and  of  all  kind, 
that  grows  in  this  Colony  excepting  pine.  On  the  seventh 
day  of  June  we  entered  into  the  river  Mississippi,  which  we 
computed  to  be  five  miles  wide.  In  the  river  Mississippi 
above  the  mouth  of  the  Allegany  is  a  large  Island  on  which 
are  three  towns  inhabited  by  the  French  who  maintain  Com- 
merce and  Trade  both  with  the  French  of  Canada  and  those 
French  on  the  mouth  of  the  said  river.  We  held  on  our  pas- 
sage down  the  river  Mississippi.  The  second  day  of  July  and 
about  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning  we  went  on  shore  to  cook  </)),, ^ 
our  breakfast.  But  we  were  suddenly  surprised  by  a  company  ' " ' 
of  men,  to  the  number  of  ninety,  consisting  of  French  men 
Negroes  and  Indians  who  took  us  prisoners  and  carried  us  to 
the  town  of  New  Orleans,  which  was  about  one  hundred 
leagues  from  us  when  we  were  taken  and  after  being  exam- 
ined upon  oath  before  the  Governor  first  separately  one  by 
one,  and  then  altogether  we  were  committed  to  close  prison, 
we  not  knowing  then  (nor  even  yet)  how  long  they  intended 
to  confine  us  there.  During  our  stay  in  Prison  we  had 
allowed  us  a  pound  and  a  half  of  bread  a  man  each  day,  and 
ten  pounds  of  pork  per  month  for  each  man,  which  allowance 

'  Ohio. 


2S6  APPENDIX. 

was  duly  given  to  us  for  the  space  of  eighteen  months,  and 
after  that  we  had  only  one  pound  of  Rice  Bread  and  one 
pound  of  rice  for  each  man  per  day,  and  one  quart  of  Bear's 
oil  for  each  man  per  month,  which  allowance  was  continued  to 
us  untill  I  made  my  escape.  Whilst  I  was  confined  in  Prison 
I  had  many  Visits  made  to  me  by  the  French  and  Dutch  who 
lived  there  and  grew  intimate  and  familiar  with  some  of  them, 
by  whom  I  was  informed  of  the  Manner  of  Government,  laws, 
strength  and  wealth  of  the  kingdom  of  Louisiana  as  they 
call  it,  and  from  the  whole  we  learned  that  the  Government 
is  Tyranical.  The  common  people  groan  under  the  load  of 
oppression  and  sigh  for  deliverance.  The  Governor  is  the 
chief  Merchant  and  enhances  all  the  Trade  into  his  own  hands, 
depriving  the  Planters  of  selling  their  commodities  to  any 
other  but  himself  and  allowing  them  only  such  prices  as  he 
pleases. 

And  with  respect  to  Religion,  there  is  little  to  be  found 
amongst  them,  but  those  who  profess  any  Religion  at  all,  its 
the  Church  of  Rome.  In  the  Town  are  nine  Clergymen, 
four  Jesuits  and  five  Capuchin  Friars.  They  have  likewise 
one  Nunnery  in  which  are  nine  nuns.  Notwithstanding  the 
Fertility  and  richness  of  the  soil.  The  Inhabitants  are 
generally  poor  as  a  consequence  of  the  oppression  they  meet 
with  from  their  rulers,  neither  is  the  settling  of  the  Country, 
or  Agriculture  in  any  measure  encouraged  by  the  Legislature. 
One  thing  I  had  almost  forgot  Viz.  we  were  told  by  some  of 
the  French  who  first  settled  there,  that  about  forty  years  ago 
when  the  French  first  discovered  the  place,  and  made  attempt 
to  settle  therein,  there  were  then  pretty  many  English  settled 
on  both  sides  the  river  Mississippi  and  one  twenty  Gun  Ship 
lay  in  the  river,  what  became  of  the  Ship  we  did  not  hear, 
but  we  were  informed  that  the  English  Inhabitants  were  all 
destroyed  by  the  Natives  at  the  instigation  of  the  French. 


TRAVELS   OF   JOHN    PETER   SALLEV.  257 

I  now  begin  to  speak  of  the  strength  of  the  Country  and 
by  the  best  account  I  could  gather  I  did  not  find  that  there 
are  above  four  hundred  and  fifty  effective  men  of  the  Militia 
in  all  that  Country,  and  not  above  one  hundred  and  fifty 
Soldiers  under  pay  in  and  about  the  Town  of  New  Orleans  ; 
tis  true  they  have  sundry  Forts  in  which  they  keep  some  men, 
but  they  are  so  weak  and  dispicable  as  not  worth  taking 
notice  of,  with  regard  to  the  strengthening  of  the  Country, 
having  in  some  of  them  only  six  men,  in  others  ten  men.  The 
strongest  of  all  those  places  is  at  the  mouth  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, In  which  are  thirty  men,  and  fifty  Leagues  from  thence 
is  a  town  called  Mobile,  nine  Leagues  from  the  mouth  of  a 
river  of  the  same  name,  in  which  is  a  Garrison  that  boasts  of 
seventy  Soldiers.  After  I  had  been  confined  in  close  prison 
above  two  years,  and  all  expectation  of  being  set  at  liberty 
failing,  I  begun  to  think  of  making  my  escape  out  of  prison, 
one  of  which  I  put  in  practice,  and  which  succeeded  in  the 
following  manner. .  There  was  a  certain  Frenchman  who  was 
born  in  that  Country,  and  had  some  time  before  Sold  his  rice 
to  the  Spaniards,  for  which  he  was  put  in  prison  and  it  cost 
him  six  hundred  Pieces  of  eight'  before  he  got  clear,  he  being 
tired  with  the  misery  and  oppression  under  which  the  poor 
country  people  labour,  formed  a  design  of  removing  his 
Family  to  South  Carolina  Which  design  was  discovered,  and 
he  was  again  put  in  Prison  in  the  dungeon,  and  made  fast  in 
Irons,  and  after  a  formal  Tryal  he  was  condemned  to  be  a 
Slave  for  Ten  Years,  besides  the  expense  of  seven  hundred 
pieces  of  eight.  With  this  miserable  Frenchman  I  became 
intimate,  and  as  he  was  an  active  man,  and  knew  the  country 
he  promised,  if  I  could  help  him  off  with  his  irons  and  we  all 
got  clear  of  the  Prison,  he  would  conduct  us  safe  until  we 
were  out  of  danger.     We  then  got  a  small  file  from  a  soldier 

1  A  dollar. 


25  8  APPENDIX. 

wherewith  to  cut  the  irons  and  on  the  2Sth  day  of  October 
1744  we  put  our  design  in  practice.  While  the  Frenchman 
was  very  busy  in  the  Dungeon  in  cutting  the  Irons,  we  were 
as  industrious  without  in  breaking  the  door  of  the  Dungeon, 
and  each  of  us  finished  our  job  at  one  instant  of  time,  which 
had  held  us  for  about  six  hours,  by  three  of  the  clock  in  the 
morning  with  the  help  of  a  rope  which  I  had  provided  before- 
hand, we  let  ourselves  down  over  the  prison  walls,  and  made 
our  escape,  two  miles  from  the  town  that  night,  where  we  lay 
close  for  two  days.  We  then  removed  to  a  place  three  miles 
from  the  town,  where  one  of  the  good  old  Friars  of  which  I 
spoke  before,  nourished  us  four  days.  On  the  eighth  day 
after  we  made  our  escape,  we  came  to  a  Lake  seven  leagues 
from  the  Town,  but  by  this  time  we  had  got  a  gun  and  some 
ammunition.  The  next  day  we  shot  two  large  Bulls  and  with 
their  hides  made  a  boat,  in  which  we  passed  the  Lake  in  the 
night.  We  tied  the  shoulder  Blades  of  the  Bulls  to  small 
sticks,  which  served  us  for  paddles  and  passed  a  point,  where 
there  were  thirteen  men  lay  in  wait  for  us,  but  thro'  mercy 
we  escaped  them  undiscovered.  After  we  had  gone  by  water 
sixty  miles  we  went  on  shore,  we  left  our  boat  as  a  Witness  of 
our  escape  to  the  French. 

We  travelled  thirty  miles  by  land  to  the  river  Shokare  where 
our  Frenchman's  father  lived.  In  this  journey  we  passed  thro' 
a  nation  of  Indians,  who  were  very  kind  to  us,  and  carried  us 
over  two  large  bays.  In  this  place  we  tarried  two  months 
and  ten  days  in  very  great  danger,  for  search  was  made 
for  us  every  where  both  by  land  and  water  and  orders  to 
shoot  us  when  found.  Great  rewards  were  promised  by  the 
Governor  to  the  king  of  the  Indians  (mentioned  above) 
to  take  us  which  he  refused,  and  in  the  mean  time 
was  very  kind  by  giving  provision  and  informing  us 
of  our  danger  from  time  to  time.     After   they   had   given 


TRAVELS  OF  JOHN  PETER  SALLEY.  259 

over  searching  for  us  and  we  having  got  a  large  vessel  and 
other  necessary  things  for  our  voyage,  and  on  the  2Sth  of 
January  our  Frenchman  and  our  negro  boy  (which  he  took  to 
wait   on   him)  and   another   Frenchman,  and   we  being  all 
armed  and  well  provided  for  our  voyage  ;  we  set  off  at  a  place 
called  the  belle  Fountain  (or  in  English  fine  spring)  and 
sailed  fifty  leagues  to  the  head  of  St.  Roses  Bay,  and  there 
we  left  our  vessel  and  traveled  by  Land  thirty  Leagues  to  the 
Fork  Indians,  where  the  English  trade,  and  there  we  staid  five 
days.     The  Natives  were  to  us  kind  and  generous,  there  we 
left  the  two  Frenchmen  and   negro   boy,  and  on  the  tenth 
of  February  we  set  off  and  travelled  by  land  up  the  river 
Giscaculfula   one    hundred    and    thirty-five     miles,    passing 
several  Indian  Towns,  the  Natives  being  very  hospitable  and 
kind  and  came  to  one  Finlas  an  Indian  Trader  who  lives 
among  the  Uchee  Nation.     On  the  first  of  March  we  arrived 
at   Fort   Augustus   in  the   Province  of  Georgia.      On    the 
nineteenth  instant  we  left  Fort  Augustus  and  on  the  first 
of    April   we   arrived   at   Charlestown   and    waited   on   the 
Governor,  who  examined  us  concerning  our  Travels  &c  and 
detained  us  in  Charlestown  eighteen  days,  and  made  us  a  pre- 
sent of  eighteen  pounds  of  their  money,  which  did  no  more 
than  defray  our  expences  whilst  in  that  town.     I  had  delivered 
to  the  Governor  a  copy  of  my  Journal  which  when  I  asked 
again  he  refused  to  give  me,  but  having  obtained  from  him  a 
pass  we  went  on  board  of  a  small  vessel  bound  for  Virginia. 
On  the  thirteenth  of  April,  the  same  day  about  two  of  the 
clock  we  were  taken  by  the  French  in  cape  Roman  and  kept 
prisoner  till  eleven  of  the  clock  next  day,  at  which  time  the 
French  after  having  robbed  us  of  all  the  Provision  we  had 
for  our  Voyage  or  Journey,  put  us  into  a  Boat  we  being  twelve 
men  in  number,  and  so  left  us  to  the  mercy  of  the  seas  and 
winds. 


260  APPENDIX. 

On  the  fifteenth  instant  we  arrived  again  at  Charlestown 
and  were  examined  before  the  Governor  concerning  our  being 
taken  by  the  French.  We  were  now  detained  three  days 
before  we  could  get  another  pass  from  the  Governor,  we 
having  destroyed  the  former  when  we  were  taken  by  the 
French  and  then  were  dismissed,  being  in  a  strange  place ; 
far  from  home,  destitute  of  friends,  clothing  money  and  arms, 
and  in  that  deplorable  condition  had  been  obliged  to  under- 
take a  journey  of  five  hundred  miles,  but  -a  gentleman  who 
was  commander  of  a  Privateer  and  now  lay  at  Charlestown 
with  whom  we  had  discoursed  several  times  gave  to  each  of 
us  a  gun  and  a  sword  and  would  have  given  us  ammunition 
but  that  he  had  but  little.  On  the  eighteenth  day  of  April 
we  left  Charlestown  the  second  time  and  travelled  by  land, 
and  on  the  seventeenth  day  of  May  1745  we  arrived  at  my 
house,  having  been  absent  three  years  two  months  and  one 
day  from  my  family,  having  in  that  time  by  the  nicest  calcu- 
lation I  am  able  to  make,  travelled  by  Land  and  water  four 
thousand  six  hundred  and  six  miles,  since  I  left  my  own 
House  till  I  returned  Home  again. 

John  Peter  Salley. 


SCHEME 

For  the  Settlement  of  a  New  Colony  to  the  Westward  of 
Pennsylvania,  for  the  Enlargement  of  his  Majesty's  Domin- 
ions in  America,  for  the  further  Promotion  of  the  Christian 
Religion  among  the  Indian  Natives,  and  for  the  more  effect- 
ual securing  them  in  his  Majesty's  Alliance. 

That  humble  Application  be  made  either  to  His  Majesty 
or  the  General  Assembly  of  Connecticut,  or  to  both,  as  the 
Case  may  require,  for  a  Grant  of  so  much  Land  as  shall  be 
necessary  for  the  Settlement  of  an  ample  colony,  to  extend 
from  the  Western  Boundaries  of  Pennsylvania  one  Hundred 
Miles  to  the  Westward  of  the  River  Mississippi,  and  to  be 
divided  from  Virginia  and  Carolina  by  the  Great  Chain  of 
Mountains  that  runs  along  the  Continent  from  the  North 
Eastern  to  the  South  Western  Parts  of  America.  That  hum- 
ble Application  be  made  to  His  Majesty  for  a  Charter  to  erect 
the  said  Territory  into  a  separate  Government,  with  the  same 
Privileges  which  the  Colony  of  Connecticut  enjoys,  and  for 
such  Supplies  of  Arms  and  Ammunition  as  may  be  necessary 
for  the  Safety  and  Defence  of  the  Settlers,  and  that  his 
Majesty  would  also  be  pleased  to  take  the  said  New  Colony 
under  his  immediate  protection. 

That  application  be  made  to  the  Assemblies  of  the  several 
British  Colonies  in  North  America  to  grant  such  Supplies  of 
Money  and  Provisions  as  may  enable  the  Settlers  to  secure 
the  Friendship  of  the  Indian  Natives,  and  support  themselves 
and  Families  till  they  are  established  in  said  Colony  in  Peace 
and  Safety,  and  can  support  themselves  by  their  own 
Industry. 
That  at  least  Twelve  Reverend  Ministers  of  the  Gospel  be 

(260 


262  APPENDIX. 

engaged  to  remove  to  the  said  New  Colony  with  such  mem- 
bers of  their  respective  Congregations  as  are  willing  to  go 
along  with  them. 

That  every  Person,  from  the  age  of  fourteen  years  and 
upwards  (Slaves  excepted)  professing  the  Christian  Religion, 
being  Protestant  Subjects  of  the  Crown  of  Great  Britain,  and 
that  will  remove  to  said  New  Colony  with  the  first  settlers 
thereof,  shall  be  entitled  to  a  sufficient  Quantity  of  Land  for 
a  good  Plantation,  without  any  Consideration  Money,  and  at 
the  annual  Rent  of  a  Pepper-Corn.  The  Plantation  to  con- 
tain at  least  Three  Hundred  Acres,  Two  Hundred  Acres  of 
which  to  be  such  Land  as  is  fit  either  for  Tillage  or  Meadow. 

That  every  Person  under  the  Age  of  Fourteen  Years 
(Slaves  excepted)  who  removes  to  said  Province  with  the 
First  Settlers  thereof,  as  well  as  such  Children  as  shall  be 
lawfully  born  to  said  First  Settlers  in  said  Province,  or  in  the 
Way  to  it,  shall  be  entitled  to  Three  Hundred  Acres  of  Land 
when  they  come  to  the  Age  of  Twenty-one  Years,  without 
any  Purchase  Money,  at  the  annual  Quit-Rent  of  Two  Shil- 
lings Sterling  for  every  Hundred  Acres ;  the  Quit-Rent 
arising  from  such  Lands  to  be  applied  to  the  Support  of  Gov- 
ernment, the  Propagation  of  the  Christian  Religion  among 
the  Indian  Natives,  the  Relief  of  the  Poor,  the  Encourage- 
ment of  Learning,  and  in  general  to  such  other  public  Use,  as 
shall  be  judged  by  the  Legislature  of  the  Province  to  be  most 
conducive  to  the  General  Good. 

That  every  Person  who  is  entitled  to  any  land  in  the 
Province,  shall  be  at  Liberty  to  take  it  up  when  they  please ; 
but  when  taken  up  shall  be  obliged  to  clear  and  fence  at  least 
Fifteen  Acres  on  every  Farm  of  Three  Hundred  Acres,  within 
Five  Years  after  the  Appropriation  of  said  Land,  and  also  to 
build  a  Dwelling  House  of  at  least  Fifteen  Foot  square  with  a 
good  Chimney  on  the  Premises  within  the  said  Term  on  Pain 
of  forfeiting  said  Land. 


\ 


SCHEME.  263 

That  the  said  Plantation  shall  be  laid  out  in  Townships, 
in  such  Manner  as  will  be  most  for  the  Safety  and  Conve- 
nience of  the  Settlers. 

That  in  order  to  prevent  all  Jealousies  and  Disputes  about 
the  Choice  of  said  Plantations,  they  shall  be  divided  by  Lot. 

That  as  soon  as  possible  after  a  sufficient  Number  of  Per- 
sons are  engaged,  a  proper  Charter  obtained,  and  the  neces- 
sary Preparations  are  made  for  the  Support  and  Protection  of 
the  Settlers,  a  Place  of  general  Rendezvous  shall  be  appointed, 
where  they  shall  all  meet,  and  from  whence  they  shall  pro- 
ceed in  a  Body  to  the  new  Colony  ;  but  that  no  Place  of 
Rendezvous  shall  be  appointed  till  at  least  Two  Thousand 
Persons  able  to  bear  Arms  are  actually  engaged  to  remove, 
exclusive  of  Women  and  Children. 

That  it  be  established  as  one  of  the  fundamental  Laws  of 
the  Province  that  Protestants  of  every  Denomination  who 
profess  the  Christian  Religion,  believe  the  Divine  Authority 
of  the  Sacred  Scriptures  of  the  Old  and  New  Testament,  the 
Doctrine  of  the  Trinity  of  Persons  in  the  Unity  of  the  God- 
head, and  whose  Lives  and  Conversations  are  free  from  Im- 
morality and  Prophaneness,  shall  be  equally  capable  of  serving 
in  all  the  Posts  of  Honor,  Trust  or  Profit  in  the  Government, 
notwithstanding  the  Diversity  of  their  religious  Principles  in 
other  Respects.  But  that  none  of  any  Denomination  what- 
soever, who  have  been  guilty  of  Prophaning  the  Name  of 
God,  of  Lying,  Drunkenness,  or  any  other  of  the  groser 
Immoralities,  either  in  their  Words  or  Actions,  shall  be  capa- 
ble of  holding  any  Office  in  or  under  the  Government  till  at 
least  one  Year  after  their  Conviction  of  such  Offence. 

The  Christianizing  the  Indian  Natives  and  bringing  them 
to  be  good  Subjects,  not  only  to  the  Crown  of  Great-Britain, 
but  to  the  King  of  all  Kings,  being  one  of  the  most  essential 
Designs  of  the  proposed  New  Colony,  it  is  a  Matter  of  the 


264  APPENDIX. 

Utmost  Importance  that  those  poor  ignorant  Heathen  should 
not  be  prejudiced  against  the  Christian  Religion  by  the  bad 
Lives  of  those  in  Authority. 

That  Protestants  of  every  Denomination  who  profess  the 
Christian  Religion,  shall  have  the  free  and  unlimited  Exercise 
of  their  Religion,  and  shall  be  allowed  to  defend  it,  both  from 
the  Pulpit  and  the  Press,  so  long  as  they  remain  peaceable 
Members  of  Civil  Society,  and  do  not  propagate  Principles 
inconsistent  with  the  Safety  of  the  State. 

That  no  Member  of  the  Church  of  Rome  shall  be  able  to 
hold  any  Lands  or  Real  Estate  in  the  Province,  nor  be  allowed 
to  be  Owners  of,  or  have  any  Arms  or  Ammunition  in  their 
Possession,  on  any  Pretence  whatsoever,  nor  shall  any  Mass- 
Houses,  or  Popish  Chappels  be  allowed  in  the  Province. 

That  no  Person  shall  be  obliged  to  pay  any  Thing  towards 
the  Support  of  a  Minister  of  whose  Congregation  he  is  not  a 
Member,  or  to  a  Church  to  which  he  does  not  belong. 

That  the  Indians  shall  on  all  occasions  be  treated  with  the 
utmost  Kindness,  and  every  justifiable  method  taken  to  gain 
their  Friendship ;  and  that  whoever  injures,  cheats,  or  makes 
them  drunk,  shall  be  punished  with  peculiar  Severity. 

That  so  soon  as  the  Province  is  able  to  support  Missionaries^ 
and  proper  Persons  can  be  found  to  engage  in  the  Affair,  a 
Fund  shall  be  settled  for  the  Purpose,  and  Missionaries  sent 
among  the  neighboring  Indian  Nations ;  and  that  it  shall,  in 
all  Time  coming,  be  esteemed  as  one  of  the  first  and  most 
Essential  Duties  of  the  Legislature  of  the  Province,  by  every 
proper  Method  in  their  power  to  endeavor  to  spread  the  Light 
of  the  glorious  Gospel  among  the  Indians  in  America  even 
to  its  most  Western  Bounds. 

That,  as  the  Conversion  of  the  Indians  is  a  Thing  much  to 
be  desired,  from  the  weightiest  Considerations,  both  of  a  relig- 
ious and  political  Nature,  and  since  the  Colony  during  its 


SCHEME.  265 

Infancy  will  be  unable  to  provide  the  necessary  Funds  for  the 
Purpose,  some  proper  Person  or  Persons  shall  be  sent  to 
Europe,  duly  authorized  from  the  Government,  to  ask  the 
Assistance  of  such  as  desire  to  promote  that  great  and  good 
Work. 

To  the  Honourable  the  Governor,  Council  and  Representa- 
tives of  the  Colony  of  Connecticut,  to  meet  in  General 
Assembly,  on  the  Eighth  Day  of  May,  1755.  The  petition 
of  the  Subscribers,  being  Inhabitants  of  His  Majesty's  Plan- 
tations in  North  America, 

Humbly  Sheweth 

That  your  Petitioners  having  taken  the  foregoing  scheme 
for  settling  a  new  colony  into  their  most  serious  considera- 
tion, and  having  deliberately  weighed  the  various  parts  thereof, 
cannot  but  most  heartily  approve  of  a  design,  which,  when 
duly  executed,  would  be  attended  with  such  happy  and  ex- 
tensive consequences  to  the  Crown  of  Great  Britain,  and  all 
His  Majesty's  colonies  in  North  America  and  which  would  at 
the  same  Time  open  the  most  effectual  Door  for  carrying  the 
Light  of  the  glorious  Gospel  of  Christ  among  the  numerous 
Tribes  of  Indians  that  inhabit  those  inland  Parts  ;  and  being 
for  our  Parts  desirous  to  embark  in  so  important  a  Cause,  if 
the  Scheme  takes  Effect,  and  to  remove  with  our  Families  and 
Fortunes  to  the  proposed  New  Colony,  when  Providence  has 
prepared  the  Way  for  us,  we  are  naturally  led  to  wish  Success 
to  the  Undertaking ;  but  however  ardently  we  wish  Success 
to  the  Scheme  or  how  sanguine  soever  our  Inclinations  may 
be  of  engaging  in  the  Affair,  common  Prudence  forbids  our 
Removal  till  such  a  Foundation  is  laid  as  will  afford,  not  only 
a  rational  Prospect  of  present  Protection  from  the  Enemy,  but 
of  handing  down  both  Civil  and  Religious  Liberty,  as  well  as 
private  Property,  to  our  Posterity ;  and  since  it  is  necessary 
that  such  Foundation  be  laid  in  Part  by  Your  Honorable  House, 


866  APPENDJX. 

we  are  constrained  to  make  our  humble  Application  to  You, 
and  we  do  it  with  the  greater  Cheerfulness,  as  the  known  Zeal 
of  New  England  for  His  Majesty's  Service  gives  us  the 
greatest  Reason  to  hope  for  the  Countenance  and  Assistance 
of  Your  House  in  an  Undertaking  that  has  so  direct  a  Tendency 
to  promote  His  Majesty's  Interest  by  securing  the  Friendship 
and  firm  Alliance  of  the  Indian  Natives,  and  thereby  preparing 
the  Way  for  the  actual  Settlement  of  those  remote  Parts  of  the 
British  Dominions,  as  well  as  for  Preventing  the  Encroach- 
ments of  the  French.  We,  therefore,  Your  Petitioners  do  most 
humbly  pray.  That  You  would  be  pleased  so  far  to  aid  the 
Design,  as  to  make  the  proper  Grant  of  so  much  Land  as  shall 
be  necessary  for  the  proposed  new  Colony,  which  we  humbly 
conceive  ought  to  extend  as  far  as  the  Scheme  proposes,  that 
is  to  say.  From  the  Western  Boundaries  of  the  Province  of 
Pennsylvania,  One  Hundred  Miles  to  the  Westward  of  the 
River  Mississippi,  and  that  it  should  be  divided  from  Virginia 
and  Carolina  by  the  great  Chain  of  Mountains  that  runs 
along  the  Continent  from  the  North  Eastern  to  the  South- 
western Parts  of  America. 

And  also.  That  Your  Honorable  House  would  be  pleased  to 
make  Application  to  His  Majesty  for  a  Charter  to  erect  the 
said  Territory  into  a  separate  Government  with  the  same 
Privileges  which  the  Colony  of  Connecticut  enjoys.  And  we 
beg  Leave,  with  all  Humility  to  add  That  as  the  Charter  by 
which  Your  Province  holds  both  their  Land  and  their  Privileges 
expressly  declares.  That  the  Christianizing  of  the  Indian 
Natives  was  the  principal  End  which  King  Charles  the  Second 
proposed  by  granting  such  extensive  Territories  and  Privileges, 
so  we  cannot  but  hope,  that  the  same  Motives  will  have  their 
proper  Weight  with  Your  Honourable  House,  to  grant  the 
Prayer  of  your  Petitioners,  and  we,  as  in  Duty  bound,  will  ever 
pray. 

To  this  petition  were  affixed  more  than  two  thousand  names. 


i 


LETTER    FROM    ROBERT   ORME   TO    GOV- 
ERNOR  DINWIDDIE.' 


Fort  Cumberland  July  i8  1755 
My  dear  Governor 

I  am  so  extremely  ill  in  bed  with  the  wound  I  have  received 
that  I  am  under  the  Necessity  of  employing  my  friend 
Capt.  Dobson  as  my  scribe.  I  am  informed  that  Governor 
Innes  has  sent  you  some  account  of  the  Action  near  the 
Banks  of  the  Monongahela  about  seven  miles  from  the  French 
Fort.  As  his  Intelligence  must  be  very  Imperfect,  the  Dis- 
patch he  sent  to  you  must  consequently  be  so  too ;  you 
should  have  had  more  early  Account  of  it,  but  every  Oficer 
whose  business  it  was  to  have  informed  you  was  either  killed 
or  wounded  and  our  distressfull  Situation  put  it  out  of  our 
power  to  attend  to  it  so  much  as  we  would  otherwise  have 
done.  The  9""  instant  we  passed  and  repassed  the  Monon- 
gahela by  advancing  first  a  party  of  300  men  which  immedi- 
ately followed  by  another  of  2<X),  the  general  with  the  Column 
of  Artillery,  Baggage  and  the  Main  Body  of  the  Army  passed 
the  river  the  last  time,  about  one  o'clock,  as  soon  as  the 
whole  had  got  on  the  Fort  side  of  Monongahela  we  heard  a 
very  heavy  and  quick  fire  on  our  front,  we  immediately  ad- 
vanced in  order  to  sustain  them  but  the  Detachment  of  the 
200  and  300  gave  way  and  fell  back  upon  us,  which  caused 
such  confusion  and  struck  so  great  a  panic  into  our  men  that 
afterwards  no  military  Expedient  could  be  made  use  of  that 
had  any  effect  upon  them,  the  men  were  so  extremely  deaf  to 
the  exhortations  of  the  General  and  the  Officers  that  they 

'  P.  R.  O.  America  and  West  Indies. 

C267) 


268  APPENDIX. 

fired  away  in  the  most  irregular  manner  all  their  ammunition 
and  then  ran  off  leaving  to  the  Enemy  the  Artillery,  Ammun- 
ition, Provisions  and  Baggage,  nor  could  they  be  persuaded 
to  stop  till  they  got  as  far  as  Gists  plantation  nor  there  only 
in  part,  many  of  them  proceeding  even  as  far  as  Col.  Dun- 
bar's Party  who  lay  six  miles  on  this  side. 

The  Officers  were  absolutely  sacrificed  by  their  unparalleled 
good  behaviour ;  Advancing  before  their  men  sometimes  in 
bodies  and  sometimes  separately,  hoping  by  such  an  example 
to  engage  the  soldiers  to  follow  them,  but  to  no  purpose. 
The  General  had  five  horses  shot  under  him  and  at  last 
received  a  wound  through  his  lungs,  of  which  he  died  the 
13th  instant  at  night.  Captain  Monies  and  myself  very  much 
wounded.  Mr.  Washington  had  two  horses  shot  under  him 
and  his  clothes  shot  through  in  several  places,  behaving  the 
whole  time  with  the  greatest  courage  and  resolution. 

Sir  P.  Halket  was  killed  upon  the  spot,  and  according  to  the 
best  calculation  we  can  as  yet  make  about  28  Officers  were 
killed. 

Col.  Burton  and  Sir  John  St.  Clair  with  35  Officers  wounded 
and  out  of  our  whole  number  of  Officers  not  above  16  came 
off  the  Field  unhurt.  We  imagine  there  are  killed  and 
wounded  about  600  men.  I  have  the  pleasure  to  acquaint  you 
that  Captain  Poison  (who  was  killed)  and  his  company  be- 
haved extremely  well,  as  did  Captain  Stuart  and  his  light 
horse,  who  I  must  beg  leave  to  recommend  to  your  protection 
and  to  desire  you  will  be  so  kind  to  use  your  best  endeavours 
to  serve  him  as  he  has  lost  by  the  death  of  the  general  the 
rewards  he  really  deserved  by  his  gallant  and  faithful  atten- 
dance on  him. 

Upon  our  proceeding  with  the  whole  convoy  to  the  Little 
Meadow  we  found  it  impractable  to  advance  in  that  manner ; 
a  Detachment  was   therefore   made   of    1200   men  with  the 


J 


LETTER    FROM    ROBERT   ORME   TO   GOV.    DINWIDDIE.       269 

Artillery,  necessary  ammunition,  Provision  and  Baggage, 
leaving  the  remainder  with  Col.  Dunbar,  with  Orders  to  join 
us  as  soon  as  possible ;  with  this  Detachment  we  proceeded 
with  safety  and  expedition,  till  the  fatal  day  I  have  just 
related  and  happy  it  was  that  this  Disposition  was  made, 
otherwise  the  whole  must  have  starved  or  fallen  into  the 
Hands  of  the  enemy  as  numbers  would  have  been  no  service 
to  us  and  our  Provision  was  all  lost. 

Mr.  Shaw  put  into  my  Hands  a  letter  from  you  directed  to 
the  General  who  was  then  incapable  of  any  business,  it  con- 
tained Notes  for  ;^2000  from  South  Carolina.  I  am  at  a  loss 
to  know  what  to  do  with  them,  forgetting  the  particular  appro- 
priation of  the  Vote  of  Assembly,  though  I  think  I  recollect 
its  being  voted  at  the  Service  of  the  Expedition  in  general 
and  at  the  disposal  of  General  Braddock  ;  these  Bills  are  made 
payable  to  him  or  Order,  for  which  reason  they  are  not  nego- 
tiable.  I  desire  your  advice  on  this  subject,  and  as  it  may 
save  time,  beg  the  favor  of  you  to  write  to  Governor  Glen 
about  it. 

As  our  number  of  horses  were  so  much  reduced,  and  those 
so  extremely  weak,  and  many  carriages  being  wanted  for  the 
wounded  men  occasioned  our  destroying  the  Ammunition  and 
superfluous  part  of  the  Provision  left  in  Col.  Dunbar's  Con- 
voy, to  prevent  its  falling  into  the  Hands  of  the  Enemy. 

As  the  whole  of  the  Artillery  is  lost  and  the  Terror  of  the 
Indian  remaining  so  strongly  in  the  mens  minds,  as  also  the 
Troops  being  extremely  weakened  by  Deaths,  Wounds  and 
Sickness,  it  was  judged  impossible  to  make  any  further 
attempts ;  therefore  Col.  Dunbar  is  returning  to  Fort  Cum- 
berland, with  everything  he  is  able  to  bring  along  with  him. 
I  propose  remaining  here  till  my  wound  will  suffer  me  to 
remove  to  Philadelphia,  from  thence  I  shall  make  all  possible 
Dispatch  to  England. 

I  am  Sir  &c 


270  APPENDIX. 

Robert  Orme  entered  the  army  as  an  ensign  in  the  35th  Foot. 
On  September  16,  1745,  he  exchanged  into  the  Coldstream 
Guards,  of  which  he  became  a  lieutenant  April  24, 1751.  He  ac- 
companied General  Braddock  to  America,  was  present  on  the 
battle-field  and  assisted  the  removal  of  the  General  from  the 
field.  After  his  recovery  from  his  wound  he  embarked  for 
England.  October,  1756,  he  resigned  his  commission  in  the 
Guards ;  he  married  the  Hon.  Audrey  Townshend,  only  daugh- 
ter of  Charles,  3d  Viscount.  Capt.  Orme  died  in  February, 
1781. 

George  Croghan,  with  a  company  of  Indians,  Andrew  Mon- 
tour and  Christopher  Gist  and  his  son,  were  on  the  battle- 
field. Christopher  Gist  was  the  General's  guide  and  with  his 
Indians  penetrated  undiscovered  to  within  half  a  mile  of  the 
fort. 

Sir  Peter  Halket,  of  Pitferran,  Fifeshire,  a  baronet  of  Nova 
Scotia,  was  the  son  of  Sir  Peter  Wedderburne,  of  Gosford, 
who  assumed  his  wife's  name.  In  1734,  he  sat  in  the  House 
of  Commons  for  Dunfermline,  was  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  the 
44th  at  Sir  John  Cope's  defeat  in  1745.  Released  on  parole 
by  Charles  Edward,  he  was  ordered  by  Cumberland  to  rejoin 
his  regiment,  but  honorably  refused.  The  King  approved  of 
his  course.  He  married  Lady  Amelia  Stewart,  second  daugh- 
ter of  Francis,  eighth  Earl  of  Moray.  He  had  three  sons : 
Sir  Peter,  his  successor,  also  in  the  army  ;  Francis,  Major  in 
the  Black  Watch,  and  James,  who  was  killed  with  him. 

Colonel  Thomas  Dunbar  was  Colonel  of  the  Forty-eighth, 
superseded  in  November,  1755,  because  of  his  injudicious  re- 
treat, and  sent  into  honorable  retirement  as  Lieutenant-Gov- 
ernor of  Gibraltar;  he  was  never  again  actively  employed. 
He  died  1777. 

Sir  John  St.  Clair,  remained  for  a  long  time  in  service  in 
America.  1756,  he  was  made  a  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  the 
Sixtieth  regiment.  1762,  he  was  made  a  full  Colonel.  At 
the  defeat  of  Braddock  he  was  shot  through  the  body. 


EXTRACTS  FROM  "AN  ANALYSIS  OF  A  GEN- 
ERAL MAP  OF  THE  MIDDLE  BRITISH 
COLONIES." 


THE  COUNTRY  OF  THE  CONFEDERATE   INDIANS,  &c. 


"  The  greatest  part  of  Virginia  is  composed  with  the  Assist- 
ance of  Messieurs  Fry  and  Jefferson's  Map  of  it." 

"In  the  Way  to  Ohio  by  Franks  Town,  after  you  are  past 
the  Allegeny  Mountain,  the  Ground  is  rough  in  many  Places, 
and  continues  so  to  the  River.  Hereabouts  the  Laurel  Hill 
springs  from  the  Mountain,  and  continues  though  not  large, 
in  a  very  regular  Chain,  I  believe  to  the  Ouasioto  Mountain. 
For  though  the  Allegeny  Mountain  is  the  most  Westerly,  on 
the  West  Branch  of  Susquehanna,  it  is  far  from  being  so  back 
of  Virginia." 

"  The  Map  in  the  Ohio,  and  its  Branches,  as  well  as  the 
Passes  through  the  Mountains  Westward,  is  laid  down  by  the 
Information  of  Traders  and  others,  who  have  resided  there, 
and  travelled  them  for  many  years  together.  Hitherto  there 
have  not  been  any  Surveys  made  of  them,  except  the  Road 
which  goes  from  Shippensburg  round  Parnel's  Knob  and  by 
Ray's  Town  over  the  Allegeny  Mountains." 

"M' William  Franklin's  Journal  to  Ohio  has  been  my  prin- 
cipal Help  in  ascertaining  the  Longitude  of  the  Fork  of  Ohio 
and  Monaungahela ;  but  however  I  must  not  omit  mentioning, 
that  the  Latitude  of  this  Fork  is  laid  down  from  the  Observa- 
tion of  Colonel  Fry  and  is  at  least  ten  Miles  more  Northerly 
than  I  would  otherwise  have  thought  it  was." 

"  M'  Joseph  Dobson  gave  me  an  Account  of  the  Distances 
from  Creek  to  Creek,  as  they  fall  in,  and  of  the  Islands,  Rifts 
and  Falls,  all  the  Way  from  the  Fork  to  Sioto ;  and  M'  Alex- 

(271) 


272  APPENDIX. 

ander  Maginty  and  M'  Alexander  Lowry,  gave  me  the  rest  to 
the  Falls,  as  well  as  confirmed  the  others.  The  River  from 
the  Fork  upwards,  is  mostly  from  M'  John  Davison." 

"  The  Routs  across  the  Country,  as  well  as  the  Situation 
of  Indian  Villages,  trading  Places,  the  Creeks  that  fall  into 
Lake  Erie,  and  other  Affairs  relating  to  Ohio  and  its  Branches, 
are  from  a  great  Number  of  Informations  of  Traders  and  oth- 
ers and  especially  of  a  very  intelligent  Indian  called  The 
Eagle,  who  had  a  good  Notion  of  Distances,  Bearings  and 
delineating.  The  situation  of  Detroit  is  chiefly  determined 
by  the  Computation  of  its  Distance  from  Niagara  by  M' 
Maginty,  and  its  Bearing  and  Distance  from  the  Mouth  of  the 
Sandusky." 

"  As  for  the  Branches  of  Ohio,  which  head  in  the  New 
Virginia  (So  they  call,  for  Distinction-sake,  that  Part  of  Vir- 
ginia South  East  of  the  Ouasioto  Mountains,  and  on  the 
Branches  of  Green  Briar,  New  River,  and  Holston  River)  I 
am  particularly  obliged  to  D'  Thomas  Walker,  for  the  Intel- 
ligence of  what  Names  they  bear,  and  what  Rivers  they  fall 
into  Northward  and  Westward." 

"  The  present,  late  and  antient  Seats  of  the  original  Inhab- 
itants are  expressed  in  the  Map ;  and  though  it  might  be  imag- 
ined that  several  Nations  are  omitted,  which  are  mentioned 
by  Authors,  it  may  be  remarked,  that  Authors,  for  want  of 
Knowledge  in  Indian  Affairs,  have  taken  every  little  Society 
for  a  separate  Nation ;  whereas  they  are  not  truly  more  in 
Number  than  I  have  laid  down  in  a  Map  I  published  of 
Pennsylvania,  New  Jersey,  New  York  and  Delaware  in  1749." 

This  Map  and  Analysis  was  printed  in  Philadelphia  by 
B.  Franklin  and  D.  Hall,  1755. 

The  Maps  of  the  Ohio  Company  Surveys  of  1750-51-52 
were  copied  from  the  original  in  the  Public  Record  Office, 
London,  by  J.  A.  Burt,  1882,  for  William  M.  Darlington.    They 


MAP   OF   THE   MIDDLE   BRITISH   COLONIES.  273 

are  in  outline,  with  fewer  names  than  are  given  in  the  map 
here  published. 


Governor  Pownall  intended  to  publish  a  second  edition  of 
his  "  Topographical  Description  of  North  America."  His  own 
copy  is  full  of  inserted  MSS.  and  marginal  notes.  On  page 
13  he  has  written  this  explanation  of  the  name  Cheonderoga. 
"This  word  denotes  the  fork  of  a  river,  or  the  confluence  of 
two  branches  which  go  off  in  one  united  stream.  This  the 
French  always  translate  Trois-Rivieres.  The  Dutch,  who  first 
improved  this  rout,  using  the  letters  tie  to  express  the  sound 
che,  as  we  do  ye  letters  tion  to  express  chon,  wrote  the  word 
Tieonderoga,  and  the  letter  e  in  the  correspondencies  being 
mistaken  for  c,  this  place  got  the  name  of  Tieonderoga.  Custom 
has  adopted  this  original  mistake.  And  the  using  the  real 
name  in  its  true  orthography  looks  so  like  affectation,  that  I 
cannot  but  think  this  explanation,  by  way  of  Apology  at  least, 
has  become  necessary.  The  situation  on  the  Ohio,  on  which 
Fort  du  Quesne,  afterwards  called  Fort  Pitt  was  built,  was  by 
the  Indians  called  Cheonderoga,  and  accordingly  by  the  French 
called  Trois  Rivieres.  It  is  recorded  by  that  name  in  the 
famous  Leaden  Plate,  which  was  buried  there  as  a  memorial 
of  their  possession.  Until  I  had  occasion  to  explain  this  it 
was  always  a  matter  of  Puzzle  to  our  Ministers,  what  Place  in 
those  Quarters  the  French  meant  to  design  by  Trois  Rivieres." 

Here  follows  an  exact  copy  of  that  plate  : 

Copy  of  the  Leaden  Plate  Buried  at  the  Forks  of 

MONONGAHELA    AND     OhIO    BY    MON"    CeLERON    BY    WAY    OF 

TAKING  Possession  &  as  a  memorial  &  Testimony  thereof. 

1753  or  2. 
L'an  1749  Dv  Regne  de  Louis  XV  Roy  de  France  Novs 
Celeron  Commandant   D'vn  Detachement   Envoie  par 


274  APPENDIX. 

Monsieur  le  M'"  De  la  Galissoniere  Commandant 
General  De  la  Nouvelle  France  pour  retablir  la  tran- 
quillite  dans  quelques  villages  sauvages  de  ces  cantons 
avons  enterr^  cette  Plaque  A  (3'  rivieres  dessous  la  riviere 
au  boeuf  ce  3  Aoust)  pres  de  la  Riviere  Oyo  autrement 
belle  Riviere  pour  Monument  du  Renouvellement  de  la 
Possession  que  nous  avons  pris  de  la  ditte  Riviere  Oyo 
et  de  toutes  celles  qui  y^  tombnt  et  toutes  les  terres  des 
deux  cotes  jusque  aux  Sources  des  dittes  Rivieres  ainsi 
qu'en  ont  jouy  ou  du  jouir  les  precedent  Roys  de  France 
et  qu'ils  sy  sont  maintenus  par  les  armes  et  par  les 
traittes  speciallment  par  ceux  de  Riswick,  D'Utrecht  et 
D'Aix  la  Chappelle. 

On  the  back  is  Paul  Lebrosse  Fecit. 

Translation. 

In  the  year  1749,  in  the  reign  of  Louis  XV,  King  of  France, 
We  Celeron,  commandant  of  a  detachment  sent  by  the  Mar- 
quis de  la  Galissoniere,  Commandant  in  Chief  of  New  France, 
to  re-establish  peace  in  certain  villages  of  the  Indians  of 
these  districts,  have  buried  this  plate  at  the  Three  Rivers, 
below  Le  Boeuf  River,  this  third  of  August,  near  the  river 
Oyo,  otherwise  the  Fair  River,  as  a  monument  of  the  renewal 
of  the  possession  that  we  have  taken  of  the  said  River  Oyo, 
and  of  all  those  which  fall  into  it,  and  of  all  the  lands  on  both 
sides  to  the  sources  of  the  said  rivers,  as  the  preceding  Kings 
of  France  have  enjoyed  or  ought  to  have  enjoyed  it ;  and 
which  they  have  upheld  by  force  of  arms  and  by  treaties, 
especially  by  those  of  Riswick,  Utrecht  and  Aix-la-Chapelle. 

^  This  is  only  scratched  with  the  point  of  a  knife,  and  scarcely  legible, 
in  a  space  which  was  left  blank  to  be  filled  up  when  buried. 
^  This  is  so  written  in  the  plate. 


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39 


ENSIGN  WARD'S  DEPOSITION. 

[Indorsed] 

P.  R.  O.  B.  T.  Virginia  N".  21. 

VIRGINIA. 

Ensign  Ward's  Deposition  before  the 
Governor  &  Council  y'  7"'  of  May  1754. 

Rec""  with  his  Letter  dated 
y"  10'"  of  May  1754. 

Rec^  July  2> ) 

Read    D"     )    '^^ 

W.  164. 
M'  Edward  Ward  Cap'  Trents  Ensign  deposes  and  makes 
Oath  to  the  following  Particulars,  That  the  French  first  ap- 
peared to  him  at  Shanopins  Town  about  two  Miles  distant 
from  the  Fort  the  17'"  of  April  last,  that  they  moved  down 
within  a  small  distance  from  the  Fort,  Then  landed  their 
Canoes,  and  marched  their  men  in  a  regular  manner  a  little 
better  than  Gun  shot  of  the  Fort.  That  Le  Merciera  French 
Officer  sent  by  Contrecoeur  the  Commandant  in  Chief  of  the 
French  Troops  came  with  an  Indian  Interpreter,  called  by  the 
Mingoes  the  Owl,  and  two  Drums,  one  of  which  served  for 
Interpreter  between  Le  Mercier  and  him  ;  Le  Mercier  pres- 
ently deliver'd  him  the  summons  by  the  Interpreter,  looked 
at  his  watch  which  was  about  two,  and  gave  him  an  hour  to 
fix  his  Resolution,  telling  him  he  must  come  to  the  French 
Camp  with  his  Determination  in  Writeing.  He  says  that 
half  an  Hour  of  the  time  allowed  him,  he  spent  in  Council 

(27s) 


276  APPENDIX. 

with  the  Half  King,  who  advised  him  to  acquaint  the  French 
he  was  no  Officer  of  Rank  or  invested  with  powers  to  an- 
swer their  Demands  and  requested  them  to  Wait  the  Arrival 
of  the  principal  Commander.  That  at  the  time  the  Summons 
was  deliver'd  to  him,  the  Half  King  received  a  Belt  of  Wam- 
pum much  to  the  same  purpose. 

That  he  went  accompanied  with  the  Half  King,  Rob' 
Roberts,  a  private  Soldier,  and  John  Davidson  as  an  Indian 
Interpreter,  that  the  Half  King  might  understand  every  word 
he  spoke  at  the  French  Camp,  That  he  there  address' d  him- 
self to  the  Chief  Commander  Contrecoeur  and  expressed 
himself  agreeably  to  the  above  mentioned  advice  of  the  Half 
King,  That  the  French  Commander  told  him  he  should  not 
wait  for  an  Answer  from  any  other  person,  And  absolutely 
insisted  on  his  determining  what  to  do  that  Instant,  or  he 
should  immediately  take  Possession  of  the  Fort  by  Force. 
That  he  then  observeing  the  number  of  the  French,  which  he 
judg'd  to  be  about  a  Thousand  and  considering  his  own  weak- 
ness being  but  Forty  one  in  all,  whereof  only  Thirty  three 
were  Soldiers,  Surrender'd  the  Fort  with  Liberty  obtained  to 
march  off  with  everything  belonging  thereto  by  Twelve 
o'clock  the  next  Day.  He  says  that  night  he  was  Oblieg'd  to 
encamp  within  300  yards  of  the  Fort  with  a  Party  of  the  Six 
Nations  who  were  in  Company  with  him,  That  the  French 
Commander  sent  for  him  to  Supper  and  ask'd  many  Questions 
concerning  the  English  Governments,  which  he  told  him  he 
could  give  no  Answer  to,  being  unacquainted  with  such  affairs, 
That  the  French  Commander  desired  some  of  the  Carpenters 
Tools,  offering  any  money  for  them,  to  which  he  answer'd  he 
loved  his  King  and  Country  too  well  to  part  with  any  of  them 
And  then  retired.  That  next  morning  he  received  the  speech 
from  the  Half  King  to  the  Governour,  And  proceed'd  with 
all  his  men  towards  Redstone  Creek  where  he  arrived  in  two 


ENSIGN   WARD  S  DEPOSITION.  277 

Days ;  and  from  thence  marched  to  Wills's  Creek,  where  he 
met  with  Coll'  Washington  and  informed  him  of  every  par- 
ticular which  had  happened,  That  Coll'  Washington  thought 
fit  to  send  back  one  of  the  Indians  to  the  Half  King  with  a 
Speech  and   to  Assure  him   of  the  Assistance  which  was 
marching  to  him ;  And  by  the  advice  of  a  Council  of  War 
dispatch'd  him  an  Express  to  his  Honour  with  the  other  In- 
dian and  an  Interpreter,  judging  him  the  most  proper  Person 
having  been  appointed  by  the  Half  King.     He  moreover  adds 
that  four  days  before  the  French  came  he  had  an  Account  of 
their  comeing,  and  saw  a  Letter  that  John  Davison  wrote  to 
Rob'  Calender  an  Indian  Trader  to  confirm  the  truth  that 
they  were  to  be  down  by  that  time.     That  the  Day  following 
he  sent  a  Copy  of  Davison's  Letter  to  Cap'  Trent  who  was 
then  at  Wills's  Creek,  and  went  directly  himself  to  his  lieu- 
tenant who  lived  Eight  or  Ten  miles  up  Monongahela  from 
the  Fort  at  a  place  called  Turtle  Creek,  it  was  late  at  night 
when  he  got  there.  Accompanied  by  Robert  Roberts,  Thomas 
Davison,  Samuel  Asdill,  and  an  Indian,  and  shew'd  him  the 
Letter,  of  which  he  sent  a  Copy  the  next  Day  to  his  Captain. 
The  Lieutenant  told   him  he  was  well  assured  the  French 
would  be  down,  but  said  what  can  we  do  in  the  Affair.     The 
morning  after  he  sent  for  the  Half  King,  and  one  of  his  Chiefs 
named  Serreneatta,  who  advised  him  to  build   a  Stockade 
Fort,  That  then  he  asked  his  Lieutenant  if  he  would  come 
down  to  the  Fort,  to  which  he  Answer'd  he  had  a  Shilling  to 
loose  for  a  Penny  he  should  gain  by  his  Commission  at  that 
time,  and  that  he  had  Business  which   he  could  not  settle 
under  Six  Days  with  his  Partner;  That  he  thereupon  answer'd 
he  would  immediately  go  himself  and  have  the  Stockade  Fort 
built.  And  that  he  would  hold  out  to  the  last  Extremity  before 
it  should  be  said  that  the  English  had  retreated  like  Cowards 
before  the  French  Forces  Appeared,  and  that  he  knowing  the 


278 


APPENDIX. 


bad  consequences  of  his  leaveing  it  as  the  rest  had  done  would 
give  the  Indians  a  very  indifferent  opinion  of  the  English  ever 
after.  He  further  says  he  had  no  Orders  from  either  his 
Captain,  or  Lieutenant  how  to  proceed,  and  had  the  last  Gate 
of  the  Stockade  Fort  erected  before  the  French  appeared  to 
him.  That  he  was  credibly  Informed  by  an  Englishman  who 
attended  the  French  Commandant  that  they  had  300  Wooden 
Canoes,  and  60  Battoes  and  had  four  men  to  each  Canoe  and 
Battoe,  that  they  had  also  Eighteen  Pieces  of  Cannon  three 
of  which  were  nine  Pounders.  That  the  Half  King  stormed 
greatly  at  the  French  at  the  Time  they  were  oblieged  to 
march  out  of  the  Fort  and  told  them  it  was  he  Order' d  that 
Fort  and  laid  the  first  Log  of  it  himself,  but  the  French  paid 
no  Regard  to  what  he  said. 

Sworn  to  by  the  abovemention'd  Ward  before 
The  Governor  in  Council 
Teste  the  7'"  May  1754. 

N  Walthoe  CI.  Con. 


Note. — Edward  Ward's  son,  John,  served  during  the  Revolution.  He 
was  lieutenant  in  the  ist,  3d  and  8th  Regiments,  Pennsylvania  Line.  Mil- 
itary Register.  Autograph  letter  of  Col.  Bayard  to  John  Nicholson  and 
receipt  of  Edward  Ward. 


LETTERS  AND  SPEECHES  TO  INDIANS. 


Camp  Saratoga,  October  12'"  1777.' 
To  his  Excellency  John  Hancock,  Esqr. 

Sir  : — I  have  the  satisfaction  to  acquaint  your  Excellency 
with  the  great  success  of  the  Arms  of  the  United  States  in 
this  Department.  On  the  7""  inst  the  Enemy  attacked  our 
advanced  Picket  upon  the  Left,  which  drew  on  an  action 
about  the  same  hour  of  the  day  and  near  the  same  spot  of 
Ground  where  that  of  the  19""  of  September  was  fought. 
From  3  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  till  almost  night  the  Conflict 
was  very  warm  and  bloody,  when  the  Enemy,  by  a  precipitate 
Retreat,  determined  the  fate  of  the  day,  leaving  in  our  hands 
eight  pieces  of  Brass  Cannon,  the  Tents  and  Baggage  of  their 
Flying  Army,  a  large  quantity  of  fixed  Ammunition,  a  con- 
siderable number  of  wounded  and  prisoners  amongst  whom 
are  the  following  principal  officers,  Major  Williams,  who  com- 
manded the  Artillery,  Major  Ackland,  who  commanded  the 
Corps  of  Grenadiers,  Captain  Money  Q  M  G  and  Sir  Francis 
Clark,  principal  Aid  de  Camp  to  his  Excellency  General  Bur- 
goyne.  The  loss  upon  our  side  is  not  more  than  (illegible) 
killed  and  wounded,  amongst  the  latter  is  the  gallant  Major 
General  Arnold,  whose  Leg  was  fractured  by  a  Musket  Ball  as 
he  was  forcing  the  Enemy's  Breast-work. 

Too  much  praise  cannot  be  given  to  the  Corps  commanded 
by  Col.  Morgan,''  consisting  of  his  Rifle  Regiment  and  the 
Light  Infantry  of  the  Army  under  Major  Dearborn. 

'  From  original  manuscript. 
'  Daniel  Morgan. 

(279) 


28o 


APPENDIX. 


But  it  would  be  injustice  not  to  say  that  the  whole  Body 
engaged  deserve  the  honour  and  applause  due  to  such  exalted 
merit.  The  night  after  the  Action  the  Enemy  took  Post  in 
the  strong  intrenched  Camp  on  their  Left  General  Lincoln 
whose  division  was  opposite  to  the  Enemy  going  in  the  after- 
noon to  direct  a  Cannonade  to  annoy  their  Camp  received  a 
Musket  Ball  in  his  Leg,  which  shattered  the  bone ;  this  has 
deprived  me  of  the  assistance  of  one  of  the  best  Officers  as 
well  as  Men,  his  loss  at  this  time  cannot  be  too  much 
regretted.     I  am  in  hopes  his  leg  may  yet  be  saved. 

The  9"-  at  Midnight,  the  Enemy  quitted  their  entrench- 
ments and  retired  to  Saratoga.  Early  in  the  morning  of  the 
9*  I  received  the  inclosed  letter  from  General  Burgoyne 
acquainting  me  that  he  left  his  whole  Hospital  to  my  protec- 
tion, in  which  are  300  wounded  officers  and  soldiers. 

Brigadier   General   Frazier  who   commanded   the    Flying 
Army  of  the  Enemy  was  killed  the  ;■'■  Inst.     At  one  o'clock 
in  the  morning  of  the  10*  I  received  the  inclosed  letter  from 
General  Burgoyne  with  Lady  Harriott  Ackland.     That  morn- 
ing as  soon  as  the  Army  could  be  properly  put  in  motion,  I 
marched  in  pursuit  of  the  Enemy  and  arrived  here  in  the 
Evening  and  found  the  Enemy  had  taken  Post   upon  the 
opposite  side  of  the  Fish-Kill  in  an  entrenched  Camp  which 
they  occupied  upon  their  advancing  down  the  Country.     The 
Enemy  have  burned  all  the  Houses  before  them   as   they 
retreated.     The  extensive  Buildings  and  Kills  &c  belonging 
to   Major  General   Schuyler  are  also  laid  in  Ashes.     This 
shameful  behaviour  occasioned  my  sending  a  Drum  with  the 
inclosed  Letter  to  General  Burgoyne. 

I  am  happy  to  acquaint  your  Excellency  that  Desertion  has 
taken  a  deep  Root  in  the  Royal  Army  particularly  among  the 
Germans  who  come  to  us  in  Shoals. 
I  am  so  much  pressed  on  every  side  with  business  that  it  is 


A 


LETTERS  AND  SPEECHES  TO  INDIANS.         28 F 

impossible  for  me  to  be  more  particular  now,  but  I  hope  in  a 
few  days  to  have  leisure  to  acquaint  your  Excellency  with 
every  circumstance  at  present  omitted. 

I  am  &c 

Horatio  Gates. 

Taimenend  to  the  xvisc  Delaware  Council. ' 

Brothers  : — I  know  you  depend  on  me  for  the  truth  of 
every  thing.  I  therefore  send  this  that  you  may  see  what  we 
are  about  and  that  you  may  know  every  thing  I  have  hereto- 
fore told  you  is  true. 

George  Morgan. 
York  Town,  October  igth,  1777 

Taivienend  to  the  wise  Delaware  Council 
Hanover  or  McCclllisters  Town 

York  County,  October  20th,  1777 
Brothers  : — I  wrote  to  you  two  days  ago  and  I  wrote  to 
you  yesterday  morning.  In  the  afternoon  about  4  o'clock  an 
Express  arrived  at  York  with  a  letter  from  our  Northern 
Army  dated  the  15th  of  this  Month  10  o'clock  p.m.  Mr. 
Hancock,  President  of  our  great  Council  gave  me  a  copy  of 
it  to  send  to  you  and  I  immediately  set  out  for  this  place  to 
overtake  Malachy  Hays  the  Express  by  whom  I  sent  my 
other  Letters.  By  riding  hard  and  in  the  night  I  lost  the 
letter  out  of  my  Pocket,  but  I  can  tell  you  the  contents. 

Extract  of  a  Letter  from  General  Schuyler,  dated 
September  2Jth,  1777.* 
Sir: — On  the  nth  inst.,  about  three  hundred  Indians  (in- 
cluding Men,  Women  and  Children)  of  the  Oneidas,  Tuscaro- 

'  From  original  manuscript. 
^  From  original  manuscript. 
19 


282  APPENDIX. 

ras,  a  few  Onondagoes,  and  Mohawks  arrived  here.  The  isth 
was  spent  in  the  usual  ceremony  of  congratulation  during 
which  we  took  occasion  to  sound  their  inclinations  to  engage 
in  the  war,  we  prepared  a  Speech  and  on  the  next  day  offered 
them  the  War  Belt  which  was  immediately  accepted  by 
Warriors  of  each  Nation ;  on  the  17th  the  War  Feast  was 
prepared ;  at  which  the  Belt  was  solemnly  accepted  by  the 
whole;  the  i8th  and  19th  passed  in  equipping  them,  and 
being  informed  about  ten  at  night  of  the  19th,  that  our  Army 
was  engaged,  and  having  then  three  of  the  Chief  Warriors  to 
sup  with  me,  Mr.  Edwards  and  myself  requested  them  to 
march  without  delay,  which  they  and  many  others  did  with 
alacrity,  and  with  such  dispatch  as  to  reach  General  Gates 
before  noon  next  day  and  by  night  the  remainder  arrived  at 
the  Camp,  making  in  all  near  one  hundred  and  fifty ;  they 
have  already  taken  about  thirty  Prisoners  beside  scalps  and 
intercepted  some  dispatches  from  General  Burgoyne  to 
General  Powell  commanding  at  Ticonderoga. 

The  Indians  have  requested  that  the  Southern  ones  should 
be  advised  by  us,  that  they  have  taken  the  Hatchet,  and  a 
Belt  will  also  be  sent  by  them. 

We  have  taken  measures  to  induce  the  whole  Confederacy 

to  join  us,  and  have  reason  to  believe  that  they  will  do  it:  if 

so,  we  shall  soon  be  informed  of  it,  and  I  think  in  that  case  it 

would  be  prudent  to  call  them  into  Action  the  soonest  possible 

into  whatever  quarter  their  services  may  be  most  wanted. 

Extract 

signed  Chas.  Thomson. 

Taimenend  to  the  wise  Delaware  Council} 

York  Town,  Oct.  i8th,  1777. 
Brothers  and  Chiefs  : 

The  within  is  a  Letter  wrote  by  the  wise   Chief  who  is 

'  From  original  manuscript. 


LETTERS   AND   SPEECHES    TO    INDIANS.  283 

placed  at  Albany  by  Congress  to  take  care  of  the  Council 
Fire  of  the  Six  Nations  and  the  Americans  at  that  place.  As 
it  is  of  very  great  importance  to  all  Nations,  I  send  it  to  you 
by  a  quick  Runner.  I  submit  to  your  wise  Council  what  to 
do  with  it.  You  may  rest  assured  of  the  contents  being 
true. 

My  advice  is  that  you  immediately  communicate  the  con- 
tents to  the  Wiandots,  Mingoes,  Shawnese,  Ottawas  and 
Chipeways.  If  they  alter  their  conduct  in  time  and  take 
pity  on  their  Women  and  Children,  it  is  not  yet  too  late  for 
them  to  ask  mercy.  I  desire  to  hear  from  you  in  twenty  days 
after  you  receive  this  and  to  know  what  the  Wiandot  &c 
think  of  it.  Our  Great  Council  of  America  desires  to  give 
you  the  strongest  assurances  of  their  Friendship  and  to  tell 
you  that  your  wise  conduct  during  this  storm  will  ever  make 
them  consider  your  Nation  as  their  great  Friend  and  Brothers. 

Taimenend.' 


To  the  Wise  Coiifuil  of  the  Delawares  at  Coochoching. 

Brothers 

I  am  very  sorry  my  good  friend  and  brother  Captain  Kill- 
buck  left  me  without  informing  me  of  his  intention,  that  I 
might  have  clothed  his  Children.  I  now  send  to  him  a  white 
ruffled  Shirt  for  himself  and  a  Callicoe  one  for  his  wife. 

Brothers 

I  shall  give  you  notice  agreeable  to  my  Promise  in  public 
Council.  In  the  mean  time  I  am  now  prepared  to  follow 
such  parties  of  Wyandotts  or  others  as  may  strike  me.  You 
may  therefore  expect  to  see  some  of  our  young  Men,  and  I 
desire  your  Women  and  children  may  rest  easy  and  not  be 

'  The  name  given  to  Col.  George  Morg^an  by  the  Indians. 


284  APPENDIX. 

frightened.     I  will  pay  for  what  Provisions  they   are  supplied 
with  at  any  of  your  Towns  in  case  they  come  that  way. 

Brothers 

'Till  yesterday  I  had  no  news  from  Philadelphia;  then 
an  express  arrived  with  letters  and  the  enclosed  News 
Papers  by  which  you  will  see  the  Cattle  have  broke  down  the 
Pen  which  our  Enemies  said  they  had  drove  the  Big  Knife 
into.  This  Pen,  Brothers  was  made  of  rotten  sticks,  and 
was  easily  broke  down  and  those  who  made  it  have  run  off  for 
fear  of  being  tramped  to  death. 

Brothers 

The  English  Army  still  continues  on  Board  their  ships  at 
sea.  Sometimes  they  come  and  look  into  our  river,  some- 
times into  another,  but  they  find  us  every  where  prepared  for 
them.  We  cannot  persuade  them  to  come  eat  their  Dinners 
at  Philadelphia,  as  they  promised  they  would.  I  suppose  they 
think  their  Broth  would  scald  them  were  they  to  come  there. 

Brothers 

A  number  of  British  Troops,  Hessians,  Canadians  and 
some  foolish  Indians  from  the  Northward,  thought  they  would 
try  to  go  from  Canada  to  Albany.  Our  people  retired  a  little 
as  they  did  last  year  from  New  York  to  Trenton.  They 
retired  I  say  as  far  as  Bennington,  and  there  they  attacked 
the  British  Troops  &c  and  took  seven  hundred  and  thirty- 
six  of  them  prisoners.  Thirty-seven  of  whom  were  Officers. 
They  are  now  confined  in  New  England. 

Another  Party  of  them  attacked  Fort  Schuyler,  which  is 
above  the  German  Flats  on  the  North  river,  in  doing  which 
they  lost  four  hundred  of  their  men,  killed  and  taken  prisoners 
by  our  people.  And  in  every  other  Skirmish  our  people  have 
had  they  have  beat  our  Enemies. 


LETTERS   AND    SPEECHES   TO    INDIANS.  28$ 

Brothers 
You  may  rest  assured  that  what  I  have  always  told  you  is 
;  true  and  that  our  Enemies  will  never  be  able  to  conquer  the 

United  States,  who  grow  stronger  and  stronger  every  day. 

I  Brothers 

I  Two  days  after  you  receive  this  I  desire'you  will  send  one 

'.  or  two  of  your  Young  Men  with  what  news  you  have  at  your 

i  Towns.     I  request  they  may  come  on  Horse  back,  as  then 

our  Young  Men  if  they  meet  them  cannot  mistake  them  they 
can  ride  down  to  the  River  Side  by  which  we  shall  know  they 
are  friends.  By  their  return  I  expect  more  good  news  to  tell 
you. 

Brothers 

I  am  determined  to  be  strong  in  good  Works  and  I  will  not 

suffer  foolish  people  to  injure  our  Friendship.     I  desire  you 

will  also  be  strong.     You  may  depend  you  will  soon  see  a 

Strong  man  walking  to  the  Towns  of  our  Enemies  ;  as  General 

J  Hand  has  told  you.     I  am  your  friend  and  Brother. 

\  Taimenend. 

By  Captain  White  Eye's  cousin^ 
and  Captain  Killbuck's  son. 
Fort  Pitt  August  30""  1777. 


i 


INDEX, 


The  Indian  names  are  spelled  as  they  were  pronounced  by  different 
tribes,  traders  and  travellers  of  different  nationalities. 


Abercrombie,  General,  187 
Aliquippa,  Queen,  86 
Allegheny  River,  86 
Allegheny  Mountains,  33 
Ammunition  promised  to  Indians,  166 
Arnold,  Major-General,  wounded,  279 
Articles  of  Peace,  55 
Auchwick,  167, 182 
Austin,  Walter,  13 

Baltimore,  Lord,  203 

Burney,  Thomas,  125 

Beatty,  Rev.  Charles,  113 

Bear  killed,  60,  61,  62,  63,  65,  72,  82 

Beaver  Creek,  tamped  on,  35,  81,  100 

"    Island  Creek,  65 

"     King,  163,  172 
Beaujeu,  Captain,  238 
Berkeley,  Governor,  12 
Big  Bone  Lick,  129 
Bland,  Edward,  14 
Boone,  Daniel,  133 
Bouquet,  99, 104 
Boundary  disputes,  203,  239 

"    of  lands  petitioned  for,  242 
Braddock's  Run,  137 
Braddock,  General,  88,  167,  183,  185 
Brittain,  King,  125 
Bucks,  two  killed,  81 
Buffaloes,  56,  60,  76 
Bull,  Captain,  174 
Burgoyne,  General,  279 

Burwell,  Colonel,  Letter  to  Ohio  Company  1751,220 
Byrd,  Colonel,  22 

(287) 


288  INDEX. 

Callender,  Robert,  i6i 
Canoe  load  of  goods,  i6o 

Cargo  of  goods  sent  to  the  Ohio  Company,  225 
Catawbas,  161 

Cave  on  the  Monongahela,  71,  141 
Celeron,  28,  29,  95,  107,  109 
Chickoconnecon,  70 
Christmas,  113 

Clayborne,  Colonel  William,  14 
Coal  and  slate,  61 
Cockey's  Cabin,  92 
Collet,  Captain,  17 

Conditions  of  Grant  to  the  Ohio  Company,  227 
Conewango,  27 
Conhaway,  64,  74 

Constitution  of  Ohio  Company,  226 
ConoUy,  John,  239 

Conference  at  Philadelphia,  171,  173,  217 
"  with  Governor,  187 

at  Fort  Pitt,  172,  174,  187 
"  "  Easton,  171 

"  "  Lancaster,  173,186 

"  "  Carlisle,  166 

"  "  house  of  Israel  Pemberton,  169 

Contrecoeur,  96,  150,  167 
Conestoga,  174 

Copy  of  Agreement,  May  7th,  1770,  244 
Council,  161 
Crane,  Totem,  134 
Crawford,  Hugh,  57,  128 
Cresap,  Thomas,  90,  202-205 

"  "         house  burned,  203 

"  "         raised  a  company,  205 

"        Michael,  letter  from  Jefferson,  205 
Croghan,  George,  96,  97,  108,  109,  114,  176-201 

"  "        and  Montour  distribute  presents,  177,  178 

"  "        makes  a  treaty  with  the  Indians,  162 

"  "        trading  house  at  Logstown,  176 

"  "        appointed  Indian  Agent,  176 

"  "        sent  west  by  Governor  Hamilton,  177 

«  "        at  Piqua,  178 

"  "        wishes  to  leave  Auchwick,  182 

"  "        Peters'  letter  to,  180,  182,  187 

"  "        asks  Governor  to  forbid  the  selling  of  liquor  to  Indians, 

183 
"  "        joins  Braddock,  183 


INDEX. 


289 


Croghan,  George,  with  Montour,  34,  44,  46,  160 

writes  advice  to  Governor  Hamilton,  179,  180,  184 

commissioned  Captain,  185 

granted  freedom  from  arrest,  185 

raises  men  for  defense  of  Western  frontier,  185 

with  Christopher  Gist,  37,  44.  46,  161 

resigns  commission,  188  . 

sent  to  German  Flats,  170 

sent  to  England,  188 

shipwrecked,  188 

Indian  deed  for  land,  190-192 

bounds  of  land,  190 
Cross  Creek,  146 
Curran,  Barney,  100 
Cussewago,  82 
Cuttaway  River,  59,  60,  130 


Dance,  Indian,  53 

Deed  of  confirmation  for  lands,  171 

Deer  killed,  80 

De  Lery,  engineer,  27 

Deserters  from  the  British  Army,  280 

De  Soto,  25 

De  la  Salle,  26,  223 

Drake,  Sir  Francis,  10 

Du  Quesne,  28 

Dunbar,  Colonel,  270 

Easton,  171 

Edmonstone,  Major  Charles,  239 

Elks,  60,  72 

Elk  Eye  Creek,  36,  103 

Eries,  16 


Fallam,  Robert,  18 

Fairfax,  Lord,  165 

Feather  dance,  53 

Fish,  47 

Fishing  Creek,  76,  145 

Flood,  120 

Forbes,  Thomas,  Journal  from  Public  Record  Office,  148 

Forts  erected,  184 

"    French,  148,  183 

"    built  by  Trent,  165 
Fort  Pitt,  173,  238 

"    Duquesne,  150, 151 


290  INDEX. 

Fort  Augusta,  173,  175 
"    Johnson,  168,  169 
"    Le  Boeuf,  147,  150 
"     Presqu'ile,  150 
"     Niagara,  149 
"     Harkimer,  170 
"     Mcintosh,  loi 
"     Edward,  170 
Fort  and  Town  planned  at  Chartiers,  236 
Forbes,  General,  171 

"  "    Conference  at  Fort  Pitt,  172 

Franklin,  Benjamin,  Address,  242 

"        William,  95,  271 
Frazier,  80,  86,  122 

"        General,  killed,  280 
French  Indians,  50 

"       presents  to  Indians,  51 
"        speech  to  Indians,  51 
Friedenstadt,  108 
Fry,  Joshua,  extract  from  letter,  222 

Gap,  Allegheny  Mountains,  137 

Gates,  General  Horatio,  letter,  279 

George's  Creek,  80 

German  Flats,  170 

Gibson,  General  John,  99 

Girty,  Simon,  Testimony,  214,  216 

Gist,  Christopher,  first  journey,  29-66 

"  "  employed  by  Ohio  Company,  29 

"  "  son's  feet  frozen,  72 

"  "  report,  79 

"  "  second  journey,  67-79 

"  "  third  journey,  80-87 

"  "  encamped  on  George's  Creek,  80 

"  "  instructions  to,  67,  231-234 

"  "  presents  for  Indians,  41 

"  "  arrives  at  home,  87 

"  "  family,  88 

"  "  death,  88 

"  •  "  Notes  on  Journals,  90-158 

Grantees  of  Land,  244 

"  "       letter  from,  245 

Grant,  General  James,  207-209 
Guess  Creek,  134 
Guyasuta  (Kiasuta),  life,  210,  213 
"       speech,  212 


INDEX.  291 


Guyasuta,  son,  210 

"         appeal  for  help,  212 

Half  King,  81,  82, 167,  276 
Hall,  Richard,  65 
Hamilton,  Governor,  160 
Hanbury,  John,  224 
Hancock,  John,  Letter  to,  279 
Harris,  Mary,  114 
"      Major,  15 
Hawk's  Nest,  135 
Hillsborough,  Lord,  241 
Hockhocking,  42,  116 
Howard,  223 
Hunter,  Robert,  155 
Hutchins,  102 
Hurricane  Tom's  Town,  42 

Ice  in  Allegheny  River,  86 

Indian  towns,  100 

Indians  disown  deed,  164 
"      cede  lands,  164 
"      invited  to  Logstown,  69 
"      presents  to,  44,  160,  177,  178 
"       message  from  Governor  Penn,  44 

answer,  45,  49,  50 
"      guide  to  Washington  false,  85 

Introductory  Memoir,  9-30 

James  River,  11,  15 

Jean  Coeur,  160,  162 

Johnson,  Sir  William,  168,  170,  174 

Joliet,  26 

Joncaire,  81 

Junundat,  111 

Kanestio  houses  destroyed,  174 
Kanhawha  River,  20,  21,  143 
Kentucky,  130,  131 
Keg  of  rum,  186 
Kilgore,  160 
Killbuck  Island,  171 
Kiskeminitas,  33 
Kittanning,  106,  189 
Kittochtinny  Hills,  164 
Kuskuskies,  81,  loi 


292  INDEX. 

Lane,  Governor  Ralph,  9 
Land  wanted  by  traders,  241 

"     company  of  traders,  241 
Laurel  Mountains,  33 
Laurel  thicket,  60,  69 
La  Demoiselle,  Fort,  124 
Le  Mercier,  275 
Leaden  plate,  Pownall,  273 
Le  Boeuf,  28 
Le  Torts  Creek,  75,  144 
Lederer,  14 
Legionville,  100 
Licking  Creek,  42,  71 

"      County,  115 
Lincoln,  General,  wounded,  280 
Logstown,  34,  81,  95,  97,  159,  160,  162,  171 

"  Treaty,  164 

Loyal-hanne,  33,  91 
Louisville,  26 
Loyal-sock  Creek,  175 

Mackinaw,  173 
Magucktown,  42,  116 
Marsha,  156 

Mastodon  bones,  57,  129 
Mason,  George,  231 
Margaret's  Creek,  36,  105 
Marquette,  26 
Mercer,  Hugh,  187 
Meyer,  Lieutenant,  112 
McKee,  Thomas,  172 
"        Alexander,  97 
Miami  River,  46,  47,  55,  i6i 
Miller's  Run  Gap,  92 
Mingoes,  127 
Mingo  Castle,  i8g 
Monakatootha,  167 
Moncton,  General,  187 
Monsies,  190 

Monongahela,  69,  71,  77,  138 
Montmorin,  99 

Montour,  Andrew  (sometimes  called  Henry),  159-175 
Montour's  children,  169 
Montour,  Madame,  152-158 

"        captain  of  Indians,  159,  169 

"        Andrew,  with  Gist,  37,  44,  46 


INDEX.  293 


Montour,  Andrew,  paid  for  services,  163 
"  "        war  song,  169 

"  "        chosen  a  counsellor  by  Six  Nations,  165 

"  "        messenger  to  Six  Nations,  159,  168 

"  "        recommended  by  Hamilton,  160 

"  "       and  Croghan  sent  to  Indians,  160,  162 

"  "        examined  at  Philadelphia,  167 

"  "       sent  for  by  Washington,  167 

"  "       speaks  to  Twigtwees,  48 

Montour's  Run,  164 

Morgan,  George,  279 

"  "        his  Indian  policy,  279-284 

"        Daniel,  279 

Morris,  Governor,  167 

Murthering  town,  81 

Muskingum,  37 

Negro  Mountain,  138 
Nemacolin,  140 
Nicholas,  Chief,  no 
Niagara,  Fort,  27 

Ohio  Company,  220,  238 

"  "  first  petition,  224 

"  "         second  petition,  225, 226 

"  "         opens  road,  225 

"  "         sends  goods,  225 

"  "         Gist  employed,  228,  231 

"  "         list  of  members,  225 

"  "  conditions  to  second  Petition,  226 

"  "  bounds  of,  225 

"  "         petition  granted,  231 

Ohio,  meaning  of,  94 
Old  Town,  32,  90,  219 

O'Hara,  James,  216,  240  ' 

Onondaga,  165 
Orme,  Captain,  letter,  262 
OppaymoUeah,  71-78,  141 
Ostuega,  155 
Ottawa,  25,  36,  103 

Pack  horses,  161 
Pamunky,  15 
Panther,  72 
Paroquets,  62 
Pattin,  John,  Col.,  69,  114 


294  INDEX. 

Paully,  Ensign,  H2 

Pennsboro,  163 

Petun  Indians,  106 

Peters,  R.,  160,  163,  165 

Piankeshee,  5 1 

Pickawillamy,  161 

Pipe  of  Peace,  170 

Pittsburgh,  Conference  at,  172 

Pine  Creek,  189 

Pittsylvania,  244 

Piqua,  126,  178 

Pluggy's  Town,  121 

Pond  Creek,  145 

Poke,  Cliarles,  70-140 

Pontiac  War  raging,  98,  173,  188 

Post,  Christian,  94,  102,  171 

Presents  to  Indians,  i6o,  162 

Presqu  'Isle,  28-172 

Prisoners,  Maginty  and  others,  132 

Protestants,  263 

Prevost,  General,  190 

Roanoke  River,  9,  10 
Raleigh,  10 
Rappahannock,  15,  17 
Rogers,  Major,  173 
Rye,  wild,  117 

Redoubt  built  by  Bouquet,  240 
Religion,  264 
Road  opened,  225 

Salt  Lick  Creek,  42 
"    Springs,  58 
"    River,  130 
Salley,  J.  P.,  journal,  253-260 

"        "      taken  prisoner,  255 

'•        "      escapes,  258 

"        "      arrives  at  Charlestown,  259 
Salle,  Sieur  de  la,  26,  223 
Sandusky,  109 
Saukon,  conference  at,  171 
Scarroyady,  147,  166,  168 
Scalps,  rewards  offered  for,  168 
Scalp  Creek,  77 

Scheme  for  a  new  colony  in  Ohio,  261-266 
Schenley,  Mrs.,  gift  to  D.  A.  R.,  240 


INDEX.  295 

Schuyler.'General,  letter,  281 

Scioto,  117 

Shamokin,  175 

Shannopin  town,  33,  34,  80,  92,  147,  i68 

Shannopin  Chief,  93 

Shannoah  town,  56 

Shawnee  town,  44,  161 

Sliingess,  81,  102, 147,  172 

Shurtees  Creek  and  Fort,  237 

Shikillimy,  157,  159 

Sinking  Creek,  136 

Smith,  Robert,  58 

Soh-kon,  100,  106 

South  Sea,  9 

Spotswood,  Governor,  21 

Speech  from  Wiandots,  etc.,  49 

"         "    Delawares  to  Twigtwees,  49 
Stanwix,  Treaty  at,  249 

"        Fort,  175 
Stone,  Standing,  116 

"      letters  cut  on,  74 

"      store  house,  68, 163 
Stony  Creek,  91 

Taimenend,  (Col.  Morgan),  address,  his  Indian  policy,  279-284 

"        letter  to  Indians  1777,  279 
Taaf,  Michael,  114 
Tecumseh,  127 
Teedyscung,  174 
Tobacco,  106 
Traders,  protect  French  deserters,  40 

"      captured,  108 
Treaty,  Winchester,  165 

"        Lancaster,  28-156 
Trent,  William,  165, 172,  245,246,  189 
Turner,  160 
Turtle  Creek,  80 
Turkey  Foot,  138 
"luscarowas,  103 
Twigtwees,  46,  52,  54,  123,  160 

Vaadalia  Colony,  243 
Venango,  81 

Wabash,  26 

Walpole,  Grant,  241-244 


296  INDEX, 

Walker,  Dr.  Thomas,  24 
Walpole,  letter  from  grantees,  247 
Ward,  Ensign,  96,  98,  167,  275 
Warrior  path,  61,  90 
Washington,  80,  84,  96,  167,268 
Wayne,  General,  100 
Weiser,  155,^59,  163 
Wharton,  Samuel,  241-244 
White  Woman's  Creek,  41,  114 
Wheeling,  145 
Wills'  Creek,  80,  87,  147 
Windaughalah,  119 
Wood,  Major,  14,  18 
Wood's  River,  21 
Wyandot's  Town,  105,  161 

Yadkin,  66,  136 
Youghiogheny,  138 

Zeisberger,  103,  113 
Zinzendorf,  155,  156,  175 


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